


The Green and the Yellow, Book 5: A Ghost of the Past

by DoveShadow



Series: The Green and the Yellow [5]
Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst angst angst and more angst, Curse Realm, Drama & Romance, F/M, Green Ninja, Like SOOOOO MUCH ANGST, Morro is the Master of Hot Air, Never separate Chartreuse or you'll suffer the horrifying consequences, Ninja, Ninja will never ever quit, Ninjago, Spinjitzu is fun but Airjitzu is better, Yellow Ninja, chartreuse, here there be ghosts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-20
Updated: 2021-02-10
Packaged: 2021-03-18 12:00:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 43,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28866648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DoveShadow/pseuds/DoveShadow
Summary: The life of a ninja never stays normal for long. The cursed spirit of Morro--Sensei Wu’s first student, and the Master of Wind--comes back to the land of the living, seeking vengeance for the wrongs his old sensei committed against him. He ends up possessing Lloyd, using the Green Ninja to carry out his evil vendetta. Aurora, along with the rest of the ninja, must fight tirelessly to stop Morro’s master plan---and to save Lloyd before it’s too late.
Relationships: Lloyd Garmadon/Original Female Character(s)
Series: The Green and the Yellow [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1677793
Comments: 91
Kudos: 23





	1. Episode 48: Winds of Change

**Author's Note:**

> (singing) OH MY GOD, WE'RE BACK AGAIN!
> 
> Helloooooo, my lovely readers! This is the day that you've all been waiting for. Season 5 is HERE!!!!!!!!! ...And it...is...ANGSTY.
> 
> I'm dead (HA) serious. This is gonna be eleven chapters of angst.
> 
> So, uh, a little author's note before we get started: I'm unfortunately not as far into writing season 5 as I wanted to be before posting it---but I didn't want to keep you all waiting any longer! And, I'll admit, I was WAY too excited to start posting this season. So that being said, combined with the fact that school is currently kicking my butt and shall be for a while, some updates may or may not take more than a week to come out. I'll try to keep posting a new chapter every Wednesday if I have one ready, but I thought I should warn you all that some chapters may take longer to come out than others. But, I will persist! I will work on this as much as humanly possible and do my best to not make you all wait too long for new chapters!
> 
> Alright, without further ado...are you ready for the first chapter? I advise you to hang on tight---and enjoy!
> 
> P.S.- I apologize in advance for what I've done ;)  
> \----------------------------

Something absolutely terrible was about to happen.

It was one of those awful things that could shake you to your very core, and threatened to take away the thing you loved most. It was something that would test me in more ways than one---and would nearly drive me to my breaking point.

Of course, I was blissfully unaware of all that as I rose with the dawn that morning.

The warm rays of the sun streamed through the second-story window and roused me from my slumber once they hit my face. I opened my heavy eyes, sighing in content at how well-rested I felt. Slowly, I sat up in my bed, a huge yawn forcing its way from my mouth. I gazed out the window, blessed with the beautiful sight of the bright rising sun and the blue sky I loved. All the signs of a normal, good day.

Or so I thought at the time.

Something caught my eye next to my bed. I looked down at my bedside table, and my mouth went slightly agape as I was met with a wonderful sight. There sat a tray full of all my favorite breakfast foods. There was even a glass of juice to go with it. The sight of it all made my stomach growl, and the amazing smells pleased my senses.

_Where did this come from?_ I wondered, even though I already had my suspicions.

Next to the tray of breakfast sat a beautiful pink rose, and a folded piece of paper lay beneath it. Smiling to myself, I reached over and grabbed the rose first, bringing it up to my nose to inhale its sweet scent. It smelled like it had been freshly picked from the garden Misako kept. After sighing pleasantly, I grabbed the note, leaning back against my pillows as I read it.

_“Breakfast in bed for you, my lady_ ,” the note said, making my smile grow wider and my heart melt. “ _I wanted to eat with you, but my mom and uncle asked for my help down in the tea shop. Hope you like the food! Oh, and by the way---happy six months, Rose._

_“Love, Lloyd.”_

I was smiling so widely that I was sure my cheeks would start to hurt. I was so overwhelmed with warm, fluffy feelings that it took all my power to not give in to the urge to flop down and squeal into my pillow. I couldn’t hold in a loud, high-pitched giggle, though, and I briefly hoped nobody had heard me. _He made me breakfast in bed?!_ I absolutely adored that boy. _What did I do to deserve him? He’s literally the best ever!_ It was hard to believe that we had already spent six months in a relationship. If you also counted the many months before we finally got together, then I had known him even longer. To me, it felt like we’d known each other forever, and I briefly wondered how I’d gotten through the first ten years of my life without him.

_Destiny may be fickle, but it led me to Lloyd Garmadon._ For that, I would forever be grateful.

My stomach growled again, prompting me to eat the glorious meal before me. I set the rose and the note aside, hopping to my feet and grabbing the tray. I brought it over to the window seat so that I could eat it while gazing out at the light of dawn and the beautiful mountains outside. All it took was one bite, and I was practically scarfing down the food. It was incredibly delicious. I wondered if Lloyd was secretly a culinary genius, or something. Where in the world had he learned how to cook like this? Maybe his mother had taught him a few things.

I ate every bit of my breakfast. I was almost sad when I finished it, but I was pleasantly full enough to not crave more. I leaned back in the seat, sighing in content. Having breakfast in my pajamas in the comfort of my own room was so relaxing; I wished I could start every morning like this.

Movement caught my eye, and I looked out the window to see Sensei Wu, Misako, and Lloyd out behind the tea shop down below me. They were unpacking a giant crate full of small jars of tea, carrying them inside the store. Wanting to properly thank Lloyd for the breakfast in bed, I leapt off the window seat and scurried to get dressed in my ninja gi.

About a month ago, Sensei Wu had bought this building and transformed it into a tea shop he’d named Steep Wisdom (which I thought was incredibly clever). Apparently, it was one of his dreams to own his very own tea shop---and since we hadn’t had any major crises to deal with for a while, he’d decided to open one. We all had helped out with it, agreeing that Sensei deserved a good retirement. Along with the Destiny's Bounty, it had become our main place of residence. Unfortunately, the shop was located a bit out of the way of the city, hidden in a small farm valley, and despite having been officially open for a week, there had been no customers. On the bright side, there was a nice collection of small bedrooms on the second floor, and I was lucky enough to have received my own.

After I’d changed, I grabbed the rose and the tray of dirty dishes and headed downstairs. I briefly stopped by the kitchen to deposit the dishes in the sink, then headed outside. I made a mental note to get a vase for the rose later. I pushed open the back door and walked outside, seeing the three family members almost done with their task.

Sensei Wu was the first to spot me as I approached. “Good morning, Aurora,” he greeted with a smile.

“Good morning, Sensei!” I replied, beaming.

Lloyd, who was leaning down into the large crate to try and retrieve the last of the tea jars from the bottom, was startled by Sensei announcing my presence. He fell over the side and into the crate, crying out and letting out an “ow” when he landed on the bottom.

I had to giggle at his expense, and I saw Sensei Wu and Misako try to hide their smiles. Lloyd popped back up out of the crate, blushing slightly in embarrassment. He chuckled awkwardly, quickly climbing out.

“Heh… Hey, Rose,” he greeted me.

“Hey,” I echoed, smiling warmly. 

Unable to resist anymore, I walked up to him and gave him a big kiss on the lips to express my gratitude. He hummed in surprise, then kissed me back. After a minute, I placed my hands on his chest and leaned away, giving him a large, delighted grin.

“You’re the sweetest boy ever,” I informed him. “You know that?”

Lloyd’s hands drifted to my hips as he smiled, not needing to ask what I was talking about. “So...you liked it?”

“I _loved_ it!” I exclaimed, beaming. “Did you make all that food by yourself?”

“W-Well, my mom helped out a little…” he admitted, blushing again. He was embarrassed to admit that his mother had helped him, but he nobly didn’t want to take all the credit, either.

I giggled at his shyness. “Don’t be embarrassed,” I told him. I then turned to Misako, shooting her a grateful smile. “Thank you, Mrs. Garmadon.”

She warmly smiled at me. “Aurora, dear, I told you to call me Misako,” she gently reminded me.

“Right, sorry,” I replied. “Old habits.” 

I then went back to gazing lovingly into Lloyd’s eyes, sighing from the immense warmth and happiness I felt. He mirrored my smile, seemingly just as lovestruck as I was. Sensei Wu and Misako shared a knowing look, smirking as they stepped away from us.

“Misako, shall we go sort those jars of tea now?” Sensei Wu suggested, already heading for the door.

“Of course, Wu,” Misako immediately replied. She headed inside with Sensei, giving the two of us some time alone. They weren’t exactly subtle, but I still appreciated their efforts.

We eventually snapped out of our lovey-dovey stupor. Lloyd let go of me and grabbed my hand, and the two of us began leisurely walking through the garden and over to the nearby waterfall that sat next to the shop. I swung my free hand by my side, still holding the pink rose.

“Thank you,” I told Lloyd after a moment, realizing that I hadn’t verbally thanked him yet. “That was incredibly sweet.”

Lloyd chuckled, blushing at all the praise he was receiving. “I’m just glad you liked it. If I hadn’t gotten my mom to help me, it probably would’ve been a disaster.”

I shared a giggle with him. “Even if it was, I still would’ve appreciated it,” I informed him. I leaned over to peck him on the lips. “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Lloyd immediately replied, a look of immense adoration in his eyes.

We found ourselves at the small pond of water that the waterfall cascaded into. We decided to sit by it and relax in the serene nature before the day’s responsibilities called us away. Lloyd leaned against a tree and I sat next to him, leaning on his shoulder as his arm wrapped around my waist. Listening to the soft roar of the waterfall almost made me fall asleep again.

After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Lloyd spoke up. “Are the others awake yet?”

I snorted in amusement. “You know they aren’t,” I replied. “Zane and Nya will probably be up any minute, but the others will sleep in as long as they can.” If they had their way, they’d sleep the entire day away. Lloyd liked sleeping in, too, but he was apparently willing to get up early to do sweet things for me. The sun was only just now peeking over the hilltops around us.

A mischievous smirk appeared on Lloyd’s face. “Should we pull a wake-up prank on them?”

The suggestion made me laugh, but I declined. “Not today,” I replied, smiling. “We’ll give them a break.” Right now, I just wanted a quiet moment with the boy I loved. After a few moments, another subject popped to mind that made me smile again. “Has it really been six months since we got together? Wow.”

“Feels like it’s always been this way,” Lloyd replied, giving me a warm smile.

“I know, right?” I agreed. I then craned my neck up to his face, pecking him on his lips. “Here’s to many more months to come.”

“Absolutely,” Lloyd vowed, pulling me closer. “I love you, Rose.”

“And I love you.” Seriously, could this day get any better?

. . .

The others _eventually_ rolled out of bed. As the sun reached its peak in the sky, our favorite mailman paid us a visit. He carried a frantic message from a coastal village by the Endless Sea that needed our help. They were apparently being terrorized by a giant, mutant Fangfish that had moved into their waters, and it was depleting their main source of food. The beast was too much for them to handle, so they’d decided to call in the experts. Having not seen much action this week, we were all too eager to assist.

The six of us flew across the land on our elemental power dragons, heading for the coast. The village wasn’t far, so it took us no time at all to get there by flight. Lloyd flew at our front, leading us onward in a V-formation across the sea to search for the Fangfish. I took a moment to admire how much of a natural-born leader he had turned out to be.

And, as always, I was having a lot of fun riding on my dragon once again.

As we flew across the ocean, Kai started laughing, playfully pulling ahead of Lloyd and spinning his dragon.

Lloyd chuckled. “Getting ahead of yourself, Kai?” he yelled. “Heh. _I’m_ leading this charge.”

He made his green dragon zoom forward and blaze past Kai. The fire ninja’s dragon was thrown off balance by Lloyd’s, and so couldn’t move out of the way when Lloyd’s dragon’s wing grazed the ocean’s surface, splashing Kai with a wave of seawater.

“Aah!” Kai spluttered in surprise as he was drenched.

I burst out laughing at him. “Don’t mess with the Green Ninja, Kai!” I advised.

“That’s one way to cool off a hothead,” Jay quipped, laughing with me.

“Hey, no one messes up my hair!” Kai exclaimed, smirking.

Kai zoomed ahead to catch up with Lloyd, flying beneath him. Lloyd saw him coming, and was able to fly up before Kai struck the ocean’s surface with his dragon, making a large blast of water fly backward in the wind and splash the four of us flying behind him.

I didn’t mind getting a little wet, but I decided to try and take revenge on Kai anyway. “How dare you!” I shouted, unable to keep from smiling. “You’re gonna get it, Kai!”

I had my dragon dive down toward him. Kai yelped, maneuvering his dragon out of my way and swooping upward. Lloyd laughed as I playfully chased Kai around our group.

Poor Zane had been splashed with the most water, and I heard him have a small coughing fit.

Cole chuckled at him. “You okay there, Zane?”

“Affirmative,” Zane replied, smiling in amusement. “It'll take more than a little water to take me out.”

Jay gasped. “Oh, what about a big fish?!” he asked, pointing behind us. “Incoming!”

I stopped chasing Kai, angling my dragon toward the back of our group. Looking down into the water, I saw something large rapidly swimming close to the surface---and it was heading right for us.

“Oh no!” Zane exclaimed.

A giant fish leapt from the sea, opening its jaws as it charged at Zane’s dragon. Zane cried out, maneuvering his dragon out of the way just in time, the giant fish’s jaws snapping at empty air as it dived back into the water. It quickly swam after us as we continued flying onward, cutting through the water like a missile.

“Whoa!” I shouted in surprise.

“There he blows!” Cole exclaimed, pointing back at the giant fish.

“Pixal says this is the one,” Zane informed us.

“And now that he’s taken the bait, let’s reel him in and get him to the aquarium,” Lloyd proclaimed.

I grinned in excitement as the six of us turned our dragons to the right, leading the Fangfish onward. It continued chasing us aggressively.

Jay smirked. “Let me guess, Kai. You caught one that big once?”

Kai scoffed. “Heck, no. He was _twice_ the size.”

Just as he said that, the Fangfish leapt from the water again, heading for Kai this time. Kai yelped in surprise, steering his dragon up and out of the way of the giant fish’s attack. I had to giggle at his high-pitched yelp.

Jay looked over at Cole, smirking. “He’s almost as hungry as you, Cole,” he stated.

Cole mirrored his smirk. “And twice as ugly as you, Jay.”

I gasped at the playful insult. “Ooooooo! Got ‘im!”

Everyone laughed loudly---minus Jay, who pouted.

I flew my dragon back up to be next to Lloyd’s. Ahead of us, I spotted a fishing boat sailing on the ocean. Lloyd and I both saw it, and shared a smile of determination.

“Time for the catch of the day,” I stated.

Lloyd nodded in agreement, looking back at the others. “In-line formation!”

We all obeyed his command, maneuvering our dragons into a single-file line behind his. I was right behind him, and Zane was behind me. The six of us zoomed toward the boat, leading the Fangfish right to it. Despite being a huge fish, it was a very fast swimmer, swimming almost as fast as we were flying.

“It’s right behind us!” Cole announced from the back of the line.

I glanced back for one moment, just in time to see the Fangfish leaping from the water once more, heading for Cole’s dragon this time. We were almost right on top of the fishing boat.

“Now!” Lloyd shouted.

As soon as the word was out of his mouth, the six of us split up, darting to either side of the boat. The Fangfish, already in the air, was too late to avoid the boat. It crashed right onto the deck, making the entire vessel rock side to side and splash water everywhere. The poor sailor captaining the boat was thrown off his feet, and I sent him a silent apology.

The Fangfish flopped uselessly on the ship’s deck. We had caught it! Everyone cheered in triumph, circling the boat on our dragons and congratulating each other on a job well done.

“Now that’s what I call hook, line, and stinker!” Jay quipped, laughing.

The six of us escorted the sailor back to the village harbor, making sure that the mutant Fangfish didn’t escape his boat. Thankfully, we arrived without incident. Once the ship was safely docked, we all dismissed our dragons. While a crane worked to remove the Fangfish from the fishing boat, I walked around with Lloyd and Kai. A few of the village’s residents came up to us and thanked us profusely, and while I preened at the praise, I was still a little shy when it came to so much attention.

I spotted a father and son by a shop counter, purchasing fishing rods. The father handed one down to his son, who wore an excited grin on his face. The sight warmed my heart.

“Looks like we made this place safe to fish again,” Kai observed.

I smiled as I saw the little boy run off toward the docks in excitement, his father trailing behind him. It made me think of another father and son I knew. I turned to Lloyd, taking his hand in my own. “If your father was here, he'd tell you that he's proud of you,” I told him. I hated to bring the sore subject up, but I felt like it needed to be said. “You've become a great leader, Lloyd.”

Lloyd smiled at me. “No---we’re a great team,” he corrected, looking between me and Kai. He then looked away, hanging his head in grief as his smile faded. “Can’t say I don’t miss him…”

My heart ached for him. It had been a long, tough road for him as he tried to work through his grief for his father. Ever since Sensei Garmadon had sacrificed himself to save Ninjago, there had been a lot of sorrow, pain, depression, and tears on Lloyd’s part. And I had been there for him every step of the way, comforting him and reminding him not to grieve but to celebrate his father---which was easier said than done. The pain had slowly been healed with time, but Lloyd would always miss his father. So would I.

“It’s working!”

Cole’s excited shout drew our attention to behind us. The mutant Fangfish was being lifted over a giant tank of seawater that would transport it to the aquarium in Ninjago City. The crane dropped the fish, and it crashed into the tank with a mighty splash. Water cascaded over the side, drenching Cole, Jay, and Zane below. The three of them shrieked as they were soaked, and I had to chuckle at the amusing sight.

Lloyd looked up, still frowning. “With my dad gone, sometimes I question where I'm going,” he admitted, looking down at his hands. “Sometimes I worry about who I might become…”

I frowned a little. _Who he might become?_ What exactly was he afraid of becoming? He wasn’t afraid of ending up evil like his father had been, was he? _Impossible._

“I know how that feels,” Kai told him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. “After I lost my dad, I lost my way. But I was lucky to have my sister to watch over me.” He then yanked Lloyd close, giving him an affectionate noogie. “Don’t let all that worry you, big shot. We won’t let you lose your way.”

Lloyd laughed, swatting Kai’s hand away. “Hey! Hey, no one messes up my hair,” he stated, mocking Kai from earlier.

Kai and I laughed at him as he extracted himself from Kai’s grip. My heart warmed at seeing the brotherly moment between them. After our laughter died down, Kai went to join the others by the fish tank to make fun of them for getting splashed. Meanwhile, I turned to face Lloyd, grabbing both of his hands this time.

“I know it’s been hard without your father here,” I said, giving him a comforting smile. “I miss him, too. But even without him, you’re the Green Ninja. You’re the greatest ninja in all the land! You may not know exactly where you’re going next, but wherever it is, I know it’ll be someplace where you’re the hero that you were born to be.”

My words made Lloyd’s smile return, and that in turn made me smile wider.

“And since your father can’t be here, I’ll watch over you from now on,” I vowed, beaming brightly. After all, I had promised his father that I would take care of his son for him---and it was a promise I was determined to keep for the rest of my life.

Lloyd chuckled at my statement. “And _I’ll_ watch over _you_ , too. Okay?” he insisted, squeezing my hands.

I giggled in delight, nodding. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Lloyd leaned over to share a kiss with me, and we both shared warm smiles after he pulled away.

“Hey, lovebirds!” Jay shouted at us, ruining the moment. “Either get a room or get in the picture!”

I blushed profusely, turning toward the lightning ninja. “Jay, I _swear_!” I admonished, stuck between being annoyed and embarrassed. Lloyd tugged me by the hand, leading me over to our brothers as I huffed. 

Jay was already turning away, jumping in front of the camera beside Zane and Cole. “No one’s gonna believe this. Getting a picture. This is awesome!”

Lloyd stood beside Kai, and I stood next to him. The six of us faced a photographer, the giant fish tank in the background. Lloyd slung an arm around my waist, and I leaned on him, facing the camera with a smile.

“Back,” Zane instructed the photographer. “Back, just a little further…”

The photographer took a few steps backward.

“Just a little further,” Zane repeated.

The photographer took one more step back, and fell over the side of the dock. Just before he fell, the camera flashed, snapping a picture of us before the poor photographer fell into the ocean. The six of us watched with open mouths. Then, we looked at each other, and burst out laughing.

“Oh, great!” Jay exclaimed. “Who's gonna believe us now?”

We heard a splash above us, and looked up to see the Fangfish’s tail rising into the air. Before we could move, its tail smacked the water, sending another wave over the side of the tank that splashed us all. We all screamed as the cold water drenched us, immediately shaking ourselves off. 

I took one look at Kai’s soggy hair--normally spiky and defying gravity, but now resembling a wet mop--then burst out laughing again, pointing at him. The others saw what I was laughing at, and it wasn’t long before they were laughing with me---even Kai, after a moment.

Just another typical day as the heroes of Ninjago.

. . .

After the Fangfish was well on its way to the aquarium, the six of us hopped on our dragons again and began flying back to the tea shop. We conversed the entire way there, and we were so immersed in talking to each other that I barely noticed when we arrived back in the quiet valley. Once again, Kai was trying to convince us of things that probably weren’t true.

“I’m just saying, it was big, but I’ve seen bigger,” Kai insisted, referring to the giant Fangfish.

I scoffed as I landed my yellow dragon. “Sure you have, Kai,” I sarcastically replied, not really believing him.

“As big as your ego?” Jay bantered, smirking.

I let out a guffaw. “Hah! I don’t think you’d ever find a fish that big.”

“Hey!” Kai exclaimed.

We all shared a laugh at his expense. As we gathered on the ground, Sensei Wu walked out of his shop’s front doors, carrying a cardboard box in his arms.

“Ninja, you need to find customers,” he told us, cutting right to the chase.

Jay frowned as he hopped off his dragon. “No ‘hello, how's it going, glad to hear you saved the day...again?’”

The rest of us hopped off our dragons too, the majestic beasts vanishing into thin air as we did.

“Yeah, Sensei,” Cole agreed. “We're all a bit tired. You mind if we handle this tomorrow?”

“We all have a share if this business succeeds,” Sensei reminded us. “How else do you expect me to be able to afford all your new uniforms?” He set the box down, opening the flaps. “Which reminds me: your new ones arrived.”

_New uniforms?_ I thought, confused. We’d all just received new ninja gis not too long ago. They were pretty sweet, too, and had lots of black for stealth. So why had Sensei bought us new ones?

The boys all excitedly crowded around to get a peek at the new uniforms.

“What do they look like now?” Kai wondered aloud.

“New suits?” Zane echoed, smiling.

Jay bounced up and down in excitement. “Sweet!”

“I bet they’re off the hook,” Cole guessed.

Sensei Wu reached into the box and pulled out...a t-shirt with the Steep Wisdom logo on it? I also spotted strange hats resembling teapots packed inside the box.

“Huh?” everyone muttered in confusion.

It took me a moment, but I soon realized what we were looking at. _Oh. They’re work uniforms._ That made much more sense.

“Those do not appear to be ninja uniforms,” Zane pointed out. “They resemble work attire.”

Our sensei nodded. “Very observant, Zane. We must focus on furthering brand awareness.” He then put the shirt aside, pulling a stack of paper fliers from the box. “And here are the fliers I want each of you to pass out in the city.”

He walked up to each of us, handing us all our own thick stack of fliers promoting the tea shop. I studied mine after he’d handed them to me, guessing that I was holding at least fifty. _Well, this is one way to get the word out_ , I thought. I wasn’t sure how well this would go, but the shop needed customers. I was willing to give it my best shot, for Sensei Wu’s sake.

Jay immediately groaned. “Ugh! If I have to pass all these out, _I_ may be the one passed out!”

His wordplay made me chuckle. After Sensei Wu had passed out all the fliers, he began distributing the work uniforms amongst us. All six of us received one, and I had mixed feelings about them. The t-shirt and apron I could live with. But the hat that was barely more than a fake teapot sitting on top of my head? That was just a tiny bit...much. There was no way I was telling Sensei that, though.

As we headed toward the shop, now wearing our work uniforms over our ninja gis, I saw Misako and Nya behind the counter inside. The phone suddenly began ringing as we walked in, and Misako rushed over to it.

“Oh! That could be our first order! Shh!” She quickly picked up the phone. “Steep Wisdom, how may we serve you?”

Kai frowned at Sensei. “Aren't we going to look kind of dorky flying up on our power dragons with these things on?”

As he spoke, I overheard Misako speaking on the phone in the background. “Yes, I see,” she said to whoever was on the other end. “And you need him right away?”

Sensei Wu turned to Kai, looking the tiniest bit smug. “You won't be flying on anything,” he announced. “We're selling tea, not magic. Besides, you all have been relying a little too heavily on your elemental powers lately. _Real_ powers come from the inside.”

The familiar phrase brought a smile to my face. “Words to live by,” I stated in agreement. If Sensei didn’t want us using our powers for this, then I planned to respect his wishes. Besides, he had a point; we all had been using our elemental powers a lot lately, instead of our ninja training. I often tried to balance the two out when I fought, but it was admittedly tough to not take the easy route where we just used our cool powers.

Lloyd placed a hand on his uncle’s arm. “It would be our honor, Sensei,” he stated.

I popped up on his other side. “I second that!”

Meanwhile, Misako was nearing the end of her phone call. “Thank you,” she said. “I’ll let him know right away.” We all turned to her curiously as she hung up the phone.

“Is it a big order?” Nya asked, excited.

“It’s the police,” Misako announced, her expression turning grim. “They’ve asked for Lloyd. There’s been a break-in at the museum.”

Everyone collectively gasped in shock.

A confused frown formed on my face, and I spoke up. “Just Lloyd?” I inquired. 

I only asked because when the police or somebody else only needed a few ninja to help them out, they usually requested _both_ the Green Ninja and Yellow Ninja, instead of just either one of us. The public viewed us as an iconic duo, and rarely saw us apart. They all figured, why not ask for the both of us? Lloyd was awesome, as well as the team leader. And me---well, not only was I pretty cool myself, but I was also the only female ninja. That still blew people’s minds for some reason.

Misako nodded at me in confirmation.

My frown vanished, but my suspicion remained. This was a little unusual. A part of me wanted to offer to go with Lloyd, but it was only a mere break-in. He could absolutely handle it on his own, and I didn’t want him to think that I thought otherwise. Besides, the police had only asked for him; it would be kind of awkward if I showed up, too.

I turned to Lloyd with a quiet sigh. “Well, looks like you’ve got important ninja things to do,” I stated, smiling at him. “Go on, hotshot. I’ll take your share.”

Lloyd smiled at my offer, handing me his stack of fliers. “Thanks, Rose. I owe you one.”

“Think of it as paying you back for this morning,” I replied with a warm smile. Normally, I would’ve just left it there and let him leave. But a weird feeling made me say more to him. “Be careful, okay?” I told him, still smiling but sending him a serious look.

“Hey, ‘careful’ is my middle name,” Lloyd stated playfully, stealing my own words from way back when.

I chuckled, and my nerves were put at ease for the moment. “Okay, ninja smarty-pants.”

Lloyd chuckled in return. He leaned over and gave me a quick goodbye kiss on my cheek. The two of us had grown a bit more comfortable with PDA, but we were still hesitant to do anything romantic around our family members---specifically our obnoxious brothers, who would tease us every chance they got.

Surprisingly, this time it wasn’t one of the boys who said anything, but Lloyd’s own mother. As Lloyd turned to leave, her words stopped him in his tracks.

“Aren’t you going to kiss your mother goodbye, too?” she inquired, clearly messing with him.

Lloyd immediately blushed, facepalming, and I tried to muffle my giggles. “ _Mom_ ,” he admonished. “We’ve… We’ve talked about this. I-I’ll catch you on the way back.”

He scurried from the shop, and everyone burst out laughing as he ran away. I found it hilarious that he had no problem kissing his girlfriend, but was hesitant to kiss his own mother. I’d definitely be teasing him on that when he returned---and, based on the amused look I exchanged with Misako, so would she.

After Lloyd had left, Sensei Wu brought us all back on track. “Remember: no powers,” he stated, leaving no room for arguments.

Kai, Jay, Cole, and Zane all groaned. 

I smiled and nodded in understanding. “As you wish, Sensei,” I replied.

Turning to the open doorway, I watched Lloyd out in the courtyard as he removed his work uniform, pulled on his gi mask, and then summoned his dragon, taking off into the sky. I found myself gazing after him as he flew away on his sparkly green energy dragon, watching until he was well out of sight.

It was just a museum break-in. I wasn’t worried about him. Not at all.

Nope...

No way.

Not at all.

. . .

Kai, Jay, Cole, Zane, and I all headed for Ninjago City to advertise Steep Wisdom to the people. We flew on our dragons to the outskirts of the city, then dismissed them and walked the rest of the way. I was proud that the boys were at least attempting to follow Sensei Wu’s wishes---but deep down, a part of me knew that they’d soon grow tired of it and probably start using their powers anyway. If they didn’t, then I’d be pleasantly surprised.

The four boys all began handing out fliers in relatively the same area. I didn’t think we would really spread the word that way, so I decided to branch out on my own to cover more ground. After all, I had both mine and Lloyd’s share of fliers to hand out (which bordered on a hundred); I wouldn’t have much success if I stayed near the others. 

So, I walked over to the east side of the city, a good distance from where the boys were hanging out. I picked a street corner near the park, claimed my spot, and started handing out fliers.

Well... _tried_ to hand out fliers was more accurate. Most people walking by barely spared me a glance other than to stare at my dorky hat, and far fewer even decided to actually look at, much less take any of the fliers. At first, I was very determined, remaining optimistic and trying everything I could think of to try and grab people’s interest. I even came up with a few slogans along the way:

“Come try Steep Wisdom, the best little tea shop in all of Ninjago!”

“Tea for the wise!”

“Steep Wisdom! Enlightenment in a cup!”

“Did I mention that your first cup is free with the flier?”

“Good tea is its own reward!”

“Best tea you’ll ever taste!”

“At Steep Wisdom, we make tea, not war!”

“Did you know that tea relieves stress?”

“Sip it up at Steep Wisdom!”

Unfortunately, despite my bright smile, enthusiastic demeanor, and fancy taglines, the people passing me by were just not interested in a new tea shop. After an hour and a half had gone by, I had only passed out a grand total of eleven fliers---five of which had been because a few passerby had recognized me as the Yellow Ninja, even while wearing the slightly ridiculous work uniform over my gi. They’d wanted a picture with me, or begged for my autograph---to which I agreed and signed a few fliers for them, after insisting that they pay a visit to Steep Wisdom. They assured me that they would stop by, but whether or not they _actually_ would do so was a mystery.

The idea occurred to me that I could use my fame as a ninja to attract attention and get people to take the fliers so they could go visit Steep Wisdom. It would be a great way to get the word out and hand out all my fliers quickly---but deep down, I knew it wouldn’t be right. If I did that, people would only want to go to the tea shop because it was associated with the famous ninja, not because they were genuinely interested in tea. And I had a feeling that Sensei Wu would prefer customers that actually wanted to buy tea because they liked tea, not because the ninja told them to. Steep Wisdom might even get turned into a tourist attraction that was only famous because the ninja and their sensei took residence there.

So, that idea was scrapped. I also refused to use my powers, genuinely wanting to do this Sensei Wu’s way. After all, I had learned long ago from Lloyd’s father that one should never rely on their powers too much, and it was a principle I had always tried to uphold ever since.

That day in the barren mountains played over in my head…

_“Ninjago is no different,” Garmadon had told us. “It put too much faith in technology, allowing the Overlord to return. And because of your friends, now the world is without power. When one relies on something too much, we become weak, vulnerable, imbalanced.”_

_I made a noise of understanding. “So what you’re saying is that we shouldn’t rely on our powers all the time?”_

_“Precisely,” he replied. “In order to find your full potential and unlock your true powers, you both must find your own balance.”_

...Gee, I missed him a lot. He’d used his past mistakes to teach us important lessons, and I’d enjoyed his words of wisdom just as I enjoyed Sensei Wu’s. And even though I didn’t get the chance to ever admit it to him...he’d been becoming something like a father to me.

Pushing the sad thoughts away, I thought hard about what to do. It was an unfortunate fact that tea just wasn’t that popular with most people. I’d come to like drinking hot tea to unwind, but most of my age group didn’t care for the stuff. Kids didn’t care for it, either, and honestly, a lot of adults preferred coffee to hot tea. So why would they be interested in a new tea shop?

It was then that an idea came to me.

No offense to Sensei Wu, but the age group that usually loved to drink tea was the senior citizens. None of them probably drank tea religiously like Sensei did, but they still enjoyed it, and some probably preferred it over any other drink. Well, at least, it had been a big staple with the older folks back in Jamonakai Village. Would it be the same here?

_Wait a minute. Isn’t there a retirement village just outside the city?_ A smile formed on my face as the idea grew more and more appealing.

And so, I abandoned my street corner and made my way toward the retirement village. I still attempted to hand out fliers along the way. Thankfully, the walk wasn’t too long, and I was soon approaching the quaint section of town. I also may or may not have taken off my teapot hat along the way, because it might’ve been annoying me---but that detail wasn’t important.

It turned out to be the smartest decision I’d made all day. Literally everyone I came across took a flier. Not a single soul denied a flier, taking one even if it was just to be nice. I met old couples in the park, lone seniors out for a walk, and I even went door-to-door for a little while. I kept my bright smile on the entire time, and remained as patient and friendly as possible. I even happily listened to a few stories when a man or woman would start rambling about a relative of theirs or a memory or two. It turned out to be a lot of fun.

A lot of them admitted to me that most people their age were always looking for excuses to go out and about, try things they’ve never tried before. After all, most people could only stand to stay in one place for so long. A few also griped about the lack of tea shops in the city (the only other one I could think of was Mystake’s tea shop, but her teas were more...special). Once I let them know that their first cup was free if they brought the flier, they were all too eager to take one.

And so, I’m extremely proud to announce that I handed out ALL of my fliers. Every single one of them. Including Lloyd’s. Without using my powers whatsoever.

I think it was safe to say that I’d earned the right to brag about it to the boys.

As the sun set on the horizon, I strode out of the retirement village, not a single flier left in hand. I was still smiling, and I held my head a little higher as I left. Sensei would be proud, and his praise would be a perfect end to a perfect day.

Or so I foolishly believed.

I was just outside of the retirement village, planning on regrouping with the boys and heading back home. I took a few steps down the sidewalk, but a gust of wind made me screech to a halt.

Yes. Wind.

Normally, I never spared a gust of wind or a breeze a second thought. But not only did this wind make me stop walking, it made my proud smile slowly disappear. It had barely moved my hair and was gone in a few short seconds, but its presence lingered ominously, unsettling me. The wind, for some reason, had felt extremely...off, for lack of a better word. It hadn’t felt natural at all. I had no idea how I could tell that something was off, but I chalked it up to instinct or intuition. I’d always seemed to have a sixth sense of sorts that gave me a bad feeling right before something big happened.

That same feeling was forming in the pit of my stomach right now.

As I tried to process what had just happened, I suddenly felt like I was being watched. Startled, I whirled around, searching for the source of the eyes I was sure were staring at me. I spent a long minute scanning every direction, but I found nothing. None of the few people meandering about were even looking my way.

Perhaps it was nothing. Maybe I was being too paranoid. But instinct and anxiety won over me, and so I immediately summoned my dragon. The bright yellow dragon carried me into the sky, and I steered it in the direction where I’d last seen the boys. Maybe they had felt the wind, too.

It didn’t take me long to find them, standing in a small park that sat in the middle of a four-way intersection on the main street. To my mild surprise, there was a person-shaped hole that’d been smashed into the ground, and Zane was climbing out of it, looking dazed. _What the heck is going on?_ As I came in for a landing, the four boys noticed me. To my confusion, at the sight of me they looked...shocked?

“What’s up, brothers?” I greeted, smiling as I hopped off my dragon and landed in front of them. “Ready to pack up and head home?”

Cole frowned in confusion. “Wait, Aurora...you still have your powers?”

I only grew more confused at his surprised inquiry. I held up my hand, summoning a bright orb of yellow light for him to see. “Uh, last I checked, yeah.” I made the light vanish, putting my hand back down at my side. “Why? What’s going on?”

“Aw, no fair!” Jay whined as I used my light, looking exasperated. “How come you still have yours?!”

Kai was the one to offer me an explanation. “None of _our_ powers are working.”

“Wait, what?” I exclaimed, somehow even more confused than before. “You guys can’t use your powers? Why?”

“You think I’d be freaking out if we knew the answer to that?!” Jay snapped.

“There was this mysterious wind,” Kai informed me, making my eyes widen. “One minute, we were all using our powers. But after the wind blew in, all our elements just...vanished.”

Cole scowled. “Even my super strength is gone. I was nearly flattened by a car!”

I held up a hand. “Hang on,” I interjected. “You guys felt the wind, too? It felt unnatural to me, but I thought I was just being paranoid.” I guess my instincts were still reliable.

“Well, it was definitely unnatural,” Kai agreed.

Zane, seemingly no longer dazed, joined the group conversation. “But you still have your powers, Aurora,” he pointed out. “I wonder why the wind extinguished our elemental powers, but not yours.”

I frowned, looking down at my hands. “I have no idea,” I admitted. 

What the heck was going on?

A realization suddenly struck me. “Hey, wait a minute!” I exclaimed, pointing at the boys accusingly. “You guys were using your powers? Sensei specifically told us NOT to use them!”

“Well, how else were we supposed to get people to take those fliers?” Kai argued. “Nobody was interested before we whipped out our powers!”

A grin spread across my face, and I cackled. “Did you guys even try? I’ll have you know that I passed out each and every one of my fliers and didn’t use my elemental power _once_! Both mine _and_ Lloyd’s share!”

Cole grumbled. “Show-off…”

“That is _not_ showing off,” I told him. “It’s following simple instructions and using my brain.” I smiled again. “You know what? I know why I still have my powers. It’s because I didn’t rely on them, and all of you did! The universe is punishing you guys.” 

“What powers?!” Jay shouted. “Where did they go?! We have to see Wu!”

The argument was forgotten for the moment, and we all agreed with him. Something was wrong, and hopefully, our sensei would be able to tell us what.

“Are we supposed to walk all the way back to the shop?” Kai complained. “That could take hours!”

He and the other boys stopped, and seemed to have the same idea at the same time. They all turned to look at me, and it took me a moment to figure out what they were thinking.

“Oh, no,” I protested, shaking my head. “Get real, guys. There’s no way that all five of us can fit on my dragon!”

Zane smiled. “You never know until you try.”

“We don’t really have a choice, Aurora,” Cole stated.

I hesitated for a moment longer, then relented, sighing. “Okay, we can try. But if anyone falls off, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” 

I leapt into the air and summoned my light dragon. Kai, Jay, Cole, and Zane all hopped on behind me, sitting along the dragon’s long neck. After making sure that everyone was holding on tight, I grabbed the reins and let my dragon rise from the ground. I slowly rose into the air, letting my brothers adjust to the movement, and then I whipped the reins and zoomed forward.

The boys all let out a collective “Whoa!” but luckily nobody fell off. They all held tightly onto the person in front of them as we zoomed out of the city. I didn’t go as fast as I normally did while riding my dragon, but I still made haste back to the valley. Thankfully, we soon arrived without incident.

Night had barely fallen as I landed my power dragon in the courtyard. Immediately, everyone hopped off, and I dismissed my dragon as the five of us scurried into the tea shop.

“Sensei!” Zane exclaimed as we all burst through the front doors.

“It’s an emergency!” Jay yelled.

“We need you!” Kai shouted.

“It’s important!” Cole exclaimed.

Inside the shop, Sensei Wu was nowhere in sight at the moment. Misako stood behind the counter, handing two customers a paper bag that I assumed was full of tea. It was a mother and daughter, and I saw the little girl’s face light up at the sight of us.

“Boys, not so loud,” Misako scolded after the guys were done shouting. “Can’t you see we have our first customer?”

The little girl wandered up to Jay, beaming. “Wow! The real ninja! Ooh, can you shock me?”

Jay frowned. “Uh...not now, kid. Maybe later, okay?”

I walked around them and went up to Misako. “Where’s Sensei?” I asked.

Just as I asked, Sensei Wu walked out from the back room, carrying a bag.

“Sensei!” Kai exclaimed as we all rushed up to him.

“Yes?” Sensei inquired.

The boys began rapidly explaining.

“We were getting the word out…” Kai began.

“And there was this wind!” Cole continued.

“And all our powers disappeared, except for Aurora’s,” Zane told him.

Sensei Wu immediately frowned in disapproval. “You were using your powers?”

“I wasn’t!” I immediately piped up.

“Yeah, I know. We’re terrible students,” Jay agreed. “But what happened to our powers?!”

Outside the shop, I heard the loud creaking of the windmill. The wind was kicking up, whistling loudly, and I suddenly felt a cold sense of dread settle over me.

A grim look passed over Sensei Wu’s face. “If your powers are gone, then something must have happened to…” He trailed off, his eyes widening in horror.

I gasped, knowing what he was afraid to say. _Lloyd!_

He still wasn’t back. Something had happened to him. Where the heck was he? 

Sensei Wu seemed to spot something behind us. He walked around us, and I followed closely behind him. Outside, dark clouds had covered the moon and stars, darkening the valley. The wind whipped violently, kicking up dust and whisking away fallen leaves. I followed Sensei’s gaze, and saw a figure walk through the gate at the far end of the courtyard. They pulled off their mask to reveal…

Lloyd.

But...it...it _wasn’t Lloyd_.

Even from a distance, I could tell that something wasn’t right with him. His expression was off, and he was wearing unfamiliar clothing, including some strange-looking armor. And even if his outward appearance wasn’t wrong, there were plenty of other things telling me that something wasn’t right. I wanted to run to him, to try and fix whatever was wrong, but instinct made me resist the urge.

Something was very, very, _very_ wrong here.

But what?

The little girl excitedly pointed at him. “It’s Lloyd!” she announced happily.

I shook my head, putting my arm in front of her protectively. I found myself uttering the awful words that I didn’t want to say, didn’t want to be true. “That… That’s not Lloyd.”

“I’m afraid you’re right,” Sensei agreed in a grim whisper. “I know that wind…”

Hearing Sensei Wu confirm my grim suspicion made my underlying fear morph into horror.

As I stood there, frozen, the boys all ventured out into the courtyard. Seeing them move made me snap out of whatever confused, fearful daze I was in---and after quickly removing my Steep Wisdom t-shirt and apron to expose my ninja gi beneath, I followed them outside. I remained behind them for the moment as we all walked to the center of the courtyard, still trying to wrap my head around whatever the heck was happening. I still couldn’t decide whether to rush over to Lloyd--not Lloyd--or demand answers from a safe distance. The emotional part of me was urging me to _fix this, fix this right now_ , but the more logical side of me said to use caution.

As the boys halted in a defensive line, me still behind them, not-Lloyd spoke. “Step aside,” he demanded in a slightly deep, somewhat raspy voice that was _most definitely not_ Lloyd’s. It only further confirmed that something was very wrong with him.

Jay decided to ask the million-dollar question. “Lloyd!” he cried over the wind. “What’s wrong with you?”

Instead of providing an answer, not-Lloyd made another demand. “I want a word with your master.”

_He wants Sensei?_ Why did everyone always have some sort of beef with Sensei Wu?

Jay blinked in surprise. “Whoa,” he exclaimed softly. “Lloyd’s gone through puberty.”

If this situation weren’t growing more terrifying by the minute, I might’ve spared a chuckle at his humor. But at the moment, a small part of me wanted to smack him, because this was NOT the time for jokes.

“What’s gotten into him?” Cole wondered aloud.

Zane, as always, provided some insight. “I sense some kind of foreign entity has taken over his body,” he informed us. “So the question isn't what, but _who_ 's gotten into him?”

Foreign entity?

_Taken over_ his _body_?!

Did that mean… Was he saying that Lloyd was...being _possessed_ by something?!

Right now, that was all the information I needed.

My fear was suddenly replaced with an underlying fury that had been waiting for a reason to bubble up to the surface. My concerned expression turned hostile, and I stepped out from behind the boys and into view, moving to stand in front of them. Whatever this threat was--whatever had taken control of the boy I loved--I had the best chance of stopping it right now before it grew worse. After all, I was the only ninja with elemental powers at the moment. As soon as I had a clear view of not-Lloyd, I shot him a furious glare (which pained me to do, because he was still technically Lloyd). When I stopped in front of the boys, I held my arms out at my sides at the ready, summoning a brilliantly bright orb of light in the palm of each hand.

With a voice that sounded a lot more confident than I felt, I spoke. “Whatever problem you have with our sensei, if you want to get to him, then you’re gonna have to go through us.”

As I threatened him and held my light at the ready, not-Lloyd’s attention focused solely on me. For the briefest of moments, so quick that I almost missed it, there was a flash of utter surprise in his eyes. But it was quickly gone, and it took only a moment for him to come to some sort of realization. That was when his hostile scowl morphed into a delighted smile.

“Ah! The fabled Yellow Ninja,” he greeted, giving me a look that I couldn’t quite read. His tone was suddenly far less threatening, almost as if he were...making an effort to be pleasant? “We meet at last!”

His words and sudden change in demeanor were very startling, and for a few seconds, it made me lose my confidence and anger. “Huh?” I muttered, my light fading as I grew hesitant.

Not-Lloyd approached me, still smiling. Even though he wore Lloyd’s face, the friendly expression looked very wrong. “I knew I’d find you sooner or later,” he said, further confusing me. “The prophecy said you would be powerful, but it failed to mention how... _lovely_ you would be.”

Before my body and brain could catch up with him, he was suddenly right in front of me, swiftly lifting my hand and planting a kiss on the back of it.

My brain stopped working.

... _What_.

...What the actual heck?

He...

Was he---

Was he _hitting on me_?!

_Oh HELL no_.

If this was Lloyd, I would’ve been a blushing, giggling mess by now. But coming from some creepy entity possessing Lloyd’s body, all it did was make me shudder in revulsion.

It took a longer moment than it should’ve, but my systems sprung to life again. I quickly came to my senses and yanked my hand from his grip so lightning-fast that you would’ve missed it if you blinked. My hostile, furious expression quickly masked my bewilderment, and I took a giant step backward in order to be closer to my brothers behind me.

“Listen, creep,” I growled so angrily that it should’ve shocked me. “I don’t know who or what in the world you think you are, but I’m only gonna say this once: get the hell OUT of my boy, or I’ll Spinjitzu you back to the filthy hole you came from!”

Not-Lloyd merely chuckled at my threat, also taking a step backward. “Interesting,” was all he said, in a very cryptic tone.

Kai stepped up, moving in front of me protectively. “Give us back our friend,” he demanded. “Now!”

Not-Lloyd stood still, cracking his neck as if preparing for a fight. He laughed again, but it was much more malicious this time. My elemental light instinctively rose to the surface again, ready to be unleashed if there became a need.

“How are we supposed to fight a friend?” Cole wondered aloud.

He was right; someone else might be in control of Lloyd now, but it was still Lloyd. How could we consciously hurt him?

Not-Lloyd smirked. “Let me show you!”

As he spoke, his appearance suddenly changed. He still wore Lloyd’s face, but his sandy blond hair turned dark as night, and his skin went extremely pale, slightly tinged with a sickly green. Dark shadows surrounded his eyes---not Lloyd’s kind, bright eyes any longer, but the evil eyes of the one who possessed him.

The sight filled me with terror.

I hate to admit it, but I was caught off guard for a moment. That was the opening not-Lloyd needed to quickly sprint forward and leap into the air, sending a strong gust of wind down at us. All five of us were blown backward, screaming, and I landed hard on my back near the tea shop’s entrance. Not-Lloyd cackled at us, and it was the most unsettling laughter I think I’d ever heard.

“Great!” Jay exclaimed as we all picked ourselves up off the ground. “We don’t have powers, but _he_ does?!”

Like so many other times, I made myself push away my terror and bewilderment, replacing them with determination. “He’s not the only one with powers,” I reminded him. I tugged my mask over my head--hoping it would hide any future expressions of terror and shock--and summoned my light again. It glowed brighter than before, fueled by my fury and determination. Normally, I’d try to fight without powers and only bring them out if normal ninja skills weren’t working---but this situation was way too dire. And I was _angry_.

Whoever had dared to possess Lloyd against his will was going _down_.

I sprinted at him, my hands both full of bright yellow light that lit up the dark atmosphere. Not-Lloyd smirked again when he laid eyes on me, and readied himself. When I was nearly upon him, he threw up his hands and sent a blast of wind straight at me. I was ready for it this time, and swiftly flipped out of its way. As soon as I was upright again, I immediately threw a beam of light at him. Unfortunately, he dodged it, but only barely; he obviously hadn’t been expecting me to retaliate so quickly.

I stood my ground, getting ready to attack again, when I hesitated. Was I really thinking this through? If I managed to land an attack, would it hurt him, or would it hurt Lloyd? I wanted to save Lloyd, of course, but did I really have to hurt him to do so?

As not-Lloyd and I came to an impasse, I saw Kai, Jay, Cole, and Zane all charging toward their possessed friend. I decided to double back and join them.

Cole leapt at not-Lloyd first, but was quickly whacked away. He kicked Jay back, tossed Zane aside, and drop-kicked Kai, sending him flying. He fended them off easily, as if he were batting away mere flies. It definitely wasn’t a fair fight, as the boys didn’t have any powers to battle with at the moment. I leapt at him right after Kai did, aiming a kick at his chest and hoping to catch him off guard. He was expecting me this time, and grabbed my foot, throwing me away from him while I was still in midair. I cried out in surprise, landing roughly on my side and skidding in the dirt. However, I managed to recover as I moved, rolling to my feet and digging them into the dirt to stop myself.

Whoever this guy was, he had been trained well---as much as I hated to admit it.

The boys, all scattered about the courtyard as I was, struggled to pick themselves back up. Cole grew determined as he rose to his feet again.

“We may not have powers, but we still know a little thing called Spinjitzu!” he stated.

The violent wind surrounding us roared in my ears, reminding me of its presence, and I reached out a hand toward Cole in warning. “Cole, wait, don’t!”

My warning came too late, as Cole cried “Ninja, go!” and twisted into his tornado of Spinjitzu. He immediately charged at not-Lloyd, who didn’t move an inch. He didn’t even look concerned. With a wave of his hand, he sent a gust of wind crashing into Cole’s Spinjitzu vortex. It knocked the earth ninja off balance, making his tornado vanish and sending him flying through the air. He slammed against the wall of the tea shop, crying out in pain.

“Cole!” I exclaimed, ignoring not-Lloyd for a moment and scurrying over to him.

Meanwhile, Jay was growing more frustrated by the minute. “So not only does he have powers, but he can control the _wind_ , too?!”

_The element of wind._ Was there such a thing as an Elemental Master of Wind? Was it whoever was possessing Lloyd now? Sensei Wu had never mentioned such a thing.

I quickly arrived at Cole’s side, tugging off my mask. Several feet away, I spotted Sensei ushering Misako and the two customers from before toward the truck parked over by the barn. I couldn’t hear what he was saying--the wind was way too loud--but he was most likely telling Misako to evacuate with the innocents. He ran back inside the shop, and I turned my attention back to Cole.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

Cole grunted. “I’ve taken harder hits,” he assured me. I offered him a hand, and he grabbed it, letting me tug him to his feet. He staggered a little and winced, still in pain, but seemed relatively okay. “Don’t worry about me. Go protect Sensei Wu.”

I frowned, hesitating. I looked behind me at not-Lloyd, who was fighting Kai, Jay, and Zane, then looked back at Cole. “B-But… Lloyd. I have to help him! I---”

“I hate to say this, especially to you, but that’s _not_ Lloyd,” Cole reminded me, speaking the same words I had at the beginning of this mess. “We’ll fight him with all we’ve got and try to get Lloyd back, but right now, whoever’s possessing him is after Wu.”

I understood what he was saying, but was still hesitant. “I’m the only one of us with powers, Cole,” I reminded him. “You need me out here.”

“No, we need you protecting Sensei Wu,” Cole stated. “You’re the one who’s best suited for that right now.”

He was right. I didn’t like it, but he had a point. Whoever was controlling Lloyd was after our sensei for some reason, and even though he could very well take care of himself, not-Lloyd posed a serious threat. As the only ninja with an elemental power at the moment, I had the best chance of stopping him if the others didn’t first.

I really, _really_ did not want to leave Lloyd…

No, that wasn’t what I was doing. As soon as Sensei was safe, I’d come straight back to rescue him.

I relented with a small nod. “Okay. We’ll do it your way,” I told him. Cole’s judgement was always rock-solid, and I trusted him.

Cole gave me a small, reassuring smile. “We’ll get through this, sis. Go.”

Casting one last glance at Lloyd-- _not_ Lloyd--I sprinted inside the tea shop. The wind outside was blasting through the open doors, and it was shaking the hanging lights and everything else that wasn’t completely tied down or heavy. I scurried around the counter and into the back room, where Sensei Wu and Nya were.

Nya turned to me as I approached. “Aurora!”

I stopped next to her, facing Sensei Wu. “Sensei, what in the world is going on?!” I asked, knowing that he was the only one who knew. “What’s happened to Lloyd? How do we save him? Who the heck is possessing him? Why can he control the wind?”

“There’s no time,” was his response to my barrage of frantic questions, quickly gathering a bag and his old bamboo staff.

Frustration was added to the pile of emotions I was feeling right now. I had to know what was going on! If I had a clue as to what was happening, then I could help Lloyd! But I knew that Sensei was right. Everything was happening so fast, and there was no time for the giant explanation I sensed was behind this.

I heard screams outside, and turned back to see Kai, Jay, Cole, and Zane all being tossed around by not-Lloyd’s powerful gusts of wind. I also saw Misako quickly drive out of the courtyard, and I breathed a sigh of relief as they escaped. The wind then made the front doors slam shut, cutting us off from the events outside. I heard the wind grow louder, and more shouting from the boys. 

Worrying for them and for what was coming, I told Sensei to stay in the back room, and ran up to the counter to face the doors. Nya followed me, standing at my side and trying to stay brave.

It wasn’t long before the doors were blasted open, revealing an angry not-Lloyd stomping into the tea shop. By now, he was emitting some sort of sickly green aura, and it struck me as familiar for some reason.

Banishing my fear again, I flipped over the counter, blocking not-Lloyd’s path. He stopped just inside the door, his anger turning into interest.

I decided to take the momentary impasse to try and reach the boy I loved. “Lloyd!” I shouted, looking into not-Lloyd’s evil eyes and hoping I’d see something familiar in them. “I know you can hear me! You can fight this! You can fight _him_! Don’t let him take control! You’re too stubborn for that!”

For a second, I thought I saw something familiar flash in his eyes. But it was gone as quickly as it had come, and all that remained was not-Lloyd’s laughter. “He can’t hear you,” he stated, but I immediately didn’t believe him. “And you can’t help him!”

Anger surged within me again, and I geared up to attack. Not-Lloyd was faster, though, and unleashed a huge gust of wind that swept me aside. I yelled as I was sent crashing into the shelves of tea lining the east wall. I fell to the floor, dazed as pain shot through me. Was this how Cole had felt earlier?

“Aurora! No!” Nya cried. Through my blurry vision, I saw her turn to not-Lloyd with a glare, nobly standing her ground. “Get out!” she yelled at him.

“Go stock some shelves before you get hurt,” not-Lloyd told her, clearly not taking her seriously.

Nya slammed her fist on the counter. “I’ll take you on anytime!”

Nya was tougher than most of us---but without her Samurai X gear, she didn’t stand much of a chance alone against the supposed Master of Wind. With a grunt of pain, I willed myself to move. _Get up!_ I urged myself, moving my aching limbs. _You have to protect Nya and Sensei, and save Lloyd! Stand up!_ I grabbed the shelf with a hand, using it to lift myself off the ground. As soon as I got back on my feet and shook my head to clear it, I felt marginally better, turning back to the scene.

Before Nya could move to attack, Sensei Wu rushed out of the back room. He grabbed her by the shoulder, stopping her.

“Stay back, Nya,” he told her. “It’s me he wants.”

“Not you,” the unwelcome intruder corrected. “Just your father’s staff.”

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. _Sensei’s old bamboo staff?_ Why would he want that?

Sensei Wu held said staff with both hands, pointing it at not-Lloyd defensively. “I see you've found the Allied Armor, Morro---yet you haven't summoned your friends.”

Morro. So that was the creep’s name. That was one question answered, but many more remained. The first of which was: how was he possessing Lloyd like this? And why?

Morro--or Morro using Lloyd’s body, anyway--grinned. “Your pathetic students haven’t given me a reason to,” he answered Sensei. “The Yellow Ninja seems to be the only one you’ve decently trained.”

It was a compliment, but I wasn’t having it. _You took away the boys’ powers, and you still have your own! It’s not their fault that you’re a cheater!_ I was still wondering why I could use my powers, yet the boys could not.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Jay protested from outside, having heard Morro’s words. “No one calls _me_ pathetic!”

Morro turned toward him and the others, smirking. He used his wind to slam the doors shut, cutting them off from us and causing many breakable things to fall and shatter on the ground around us.

It was the opening I needed.

_Lloyd,_ I silently said, _please forgive me if this hurts you!_

I leapt forward and summoned my light at the same time, charging at Morro. With a cry of fury, I aimed a flying kick at his back. Morro was caught off guard, and I finally landed an attack on him, kicking him into the doors he’d just slammed shut. I didn’t waste a second, landing next to him and blasting him away with a beam of bright light as soon as my feet touched the ground. He went tumbling to the floor near where I’d crashed a minute earlier, and despite it being Lloyd’s body I was really hurting, I felt a twinge of satisfaction knowing I’d hurt Morro, too.

It didn’t take long for Morro to pick himself up, chuckling as he did. “Impressive,” he admitted, making that amused smile he seemed to reserve only for me. It was starting to drive me insane. “Few have ever taken me by surprise.”

“Few have ever made me this angry,” I shot back, leering at him as I readied my light again. “You’re in for a world of pain.”

Morro, once again, laughed at my threat. Before either one of us could attack again, Sensei Wu ran out from behind the counter, stopping in front of me.

“Enough!” he declared, glaring at Morro. “You will not harm my students anymore.”

“Come on, old man,” Morro replied. “You should know that I would never intentionally harm the Yellow Ninja.”

His words caught me off guard again. _Intentionally?_ So tossing me into a shelf wasn’t “intentionally” harming me? And another question to add to the ever-growing pile: why did Morro seem to be so interested in me?

“Then don’t,” Sensei Wu told him, readying himself for a fight. “You want the staff? Try to take it.”

Morro yelled in fury, leaping at Sensei before I could move to stop him. He pinned Sensei to the floor, the staff separating them. Sensei quickly shoved Morro backward to rise to his feet. The two held the staff firmly, each one of them tugging it as they moved about the room. Morro then rushed forward, pushing Sensei Wu backward and pinning him against a shelf.

“You’ve gotten old,” he observed, amused. “You used to be a great sensei. Now you’re just a petty shopkeep.”

“With age comes wisdom,” Sensei shot back.

Suddenly, he picked his feet up off the ground, placing them on the shelf behind him and using that leverage to shove Morro off of him. Morro staggered backward, and the staff flew out of both their hands. It landed between me and where Sensei had fallen, rolling in a clump of dust on the wooden floor. To everyone’s shock, when the staff rolled across the dust, it left symbols behind.

_No way_.

“A secret message engraved on the staff,” Sensei Wu gasped, apparently as surprised as I was.

Behind him, Morro rose to his feet. “The staff of the first Spinjitzu master,” he stated.

I couldn’t imagine what the secret message meant, or why it was even on the staff. All I knew was that Morro would _not_ be taking it.

I darted forward before Morro could move, swiping the staff off the ground. I held it close with both hands, leering at Morro again.

Morro merely smirked, summoning his wind. He sent a gust my way, grabbing the staff with it. It was suddenly being pulled toward him, but I stubbornly hung onto it, digging my heels into the floor as his wind dragged me inch by inch toward him. I used all my strength and tried my best, but his wind was too powerful, yanking me over to him.

Morro grabbed onto the staff, smiling at me as I tried wrenching it from his grasp. “Sorry, my lady,” he said, trying to sound chivalrous, “but I’m not leaving without this staff.”

_My lady._ That’s what Lloyd always called me. The two simple words made me freeze, and for a brief moment, instead of seeing Lloyd’s dark, possessed demeanor, I saw his kind, smiling face.

I was quickly snapped out of it as the shelf behind Morro came crashing down on top of him, making him let go of the staff. Nya stood next to the fallen shelf, smirking triumphantly.

“I do more than stock shelves!” she stated.

I shook my head, chasing away the memories nagging at me. “Way to go, Nya,” I praised.

“Yes,” Sensei agreed as I handed his father’s staff over to him. “Now, we leave.”

Nya ran to the door and threw it open, Sensei hot on her heels. “To the barn!” she announced, running past the boys outside.

“Wait!” I shouted, stepping outside but not following them. “I am _not_ running away from Lloyd!”

“She’s right!” Kai agreed. “We can’t just leave him!”

Sensei Wu stopped, turning back to face us with a grim expression. “We will not win this fight today.”

Zane, Cole, and Jay all immediately heeded his words, running with him and Nya to the barn. 

Kai, after one last glance at the open shop doors, sighed in defeat. “Come on, Aurora,” he urged, reluctantly turning and running after the others.

I stayed put. I watched him rush toward the barn with the others, not knowing that I wasn’t following him. No, I would _not_ leave Lloyd alone. I couldn’t. I _wouldn’t_. I told him a long time ago that I’d _never_ leave him, and I planned to keep my word.

I also promised his father that I’d take care of him. I wasn’t about to break that promise.

I faced the open tea shop doors, taking a deep, calming breath to steady my racing heart. I could reach Lloyd, I knew I could---I just had to try. I took a few tentative steps toward the entrance.

Before I reached it, I heard Morro’s furious shout. “Give me the staff!”

There was a loud crash, and a strong gust of wind blew out of the entrance, knocking me backward. I hit the ground in the center of the courtyard, and rolled backward so I was on my feet again. As I stood, I saw the Destiny’s Bounty rising out of the barn and into the dark sky. Craning my neck upward, I spotted four concerned faces peering over the side of the ship, looking down at me.

I smiled a little, turning my attention back to the entrance. _No doubt they think I’m crazy_. Honestly, this probably was a little crazy. Morro was powerful, and I wasn’t entirely sure I could defeat him by myself.

But I would gladly do whatever it took to save Lloyd.

Morro appeared in the doorway, blasting the doors off their hinges with his wind. He spotted the Bounty flying away, and ran toward it. I immediately leapt in front of him, blocking his path. He skidded to a stop a foot away from me, scoffing at my stubbornness.

“Are you sure you want to stand in my way?” he asked.

I stood my ground confidently. “If that’s what it takes to save Lloyd, then yes,” I replied. “I promised to look after him, and I intend to.”

Morro charged at me, and I was ready for him. He swung his fist at me, and I ducked underneath it. I immediately moved to his side, aiming a kick at his leg, but he stepped out of the way in time. He then ran at me, and I threw up my arms to stop him. Our hands collided, and we began pushing against each other.

I took the moment to try and reach Lloyd again.

“Lloyd,” I called, looking into his eyes. “I know you’re in there! Fight him! Fight him with me! You can do it!”

Thinking quickly, I let go of Morro’s hands and swiftly moved behind him, pinning one of his arms behind his back and holding him close with my free arm. I used every drop of strength I had left, somehow holding him in place as he struggled.

“The staff is getting away,” Morro exclaimed as we watched the Bounty slowly drift further away. “Let go of me!”

“Only when you let go of Lloyd!” I shot back. “Let him go! Now!”

Morro grabbed my arm, trying to pull me off of him. He grunted as he strained himself, and I saw his eyes clench shut. After a long moment, he opened them again---but this time, they were eyes I recognized.

“Aurora…”

_Lloyd!_

That was Lloyd’s voice!

I gasped, immediately letting go of him and moving around to face him. I grabbed his wrists firmly, just in case Morro took control again. “Lloyd!” I exclaimed, relief washing through me for one blissful moment. “I’m right here, Lloyd! Keep fighting him! You can do it!”

He struggled to lift his head, and he gave me the most desperate, scared look I’d ever seen him make. “H-Help me…”

His broken tone shattered my heart, and tears quickly sprung to my eyes. “I-I’m trying, Lloyd! I promise!” I assured him, a tear dripping down my cheek. “Listen to me. I swear, I _will_ save you. I’ll get you back if it’s the last thing I do! And until I do, I want you to keep fighting. I know how stubborn you are. Never stop fighting him. Never give up hope. I’ll get you out of this! Just hang in there for me! I’ll never stop fighting for you!” 

Another tear fell from my eyes, and I hoped that I could fully break through to him, that I could free him from Morro’s control. “Lloyd, always remember: I love---”

I was cut off with a yelp as something suddenly yanked me into the air. I was forced to let go of Lloyd’s hands, and I saw that the Bounty’s anchor had scooped me off the ground, pulling me up toward the ship.

“No! Guys! Wait!” I shouted up at them. I frantically glanced back down at Morro, seeing him struggling to regain control over Lloyd again. “Let me go! Please! I-I saw Lloyd! He’s still in there! I was getting through to him! Put me down! I can’t leave him!” I reached down toward the hunched-over figure below. “Lloyd! NO!”

The others didn’t listen, and the anchor continued forcefully dragging me away from Lloyd. As I saw Morro regain his control, I felt an overwhelming urge to break down and cry.

The anchor reached the Bounty, and the boys immediately pulled me over the side and onto the deck. I felt far too many emotions as I stood there, not knowing how to process it all. The sails rattled around, making me look back over the edge of the ship. Morro was using his wind to keep the Bounty from leaving, trying to tug it backward.

Spotting Nya at the helm up on the bridge, I scurried up there, running over to her. “We have to go back, Nya! Please!”

Nya gave me an apologetic look. “Sorry, Aurora. That’s what I’m trying to avoid.”

I shook my head. “You don’t understand! Lloyd, he was---”

I was cut off as the ship began tilting backward, making me and Nya slide backward.

“Oh no!” Nya yelled as she was wrenched away from the wheel.

An idea quickly sprung to mind, and I turned to Nya. “Give me your hand!”

She put her hand in mine, and using the last bit of strength I had, I tossed her back up to the steering wheel. I blinked in mild surprise; I didn’t think I’d have that much strength left in me.

Nya reached the wheel, grabbing onto a lever. “I got it!” she exclaimed, pulling the lever down.

As soon as she did, the ship’s main booster activated, blasting us out of Morro’s hold and up, up, and away from the valley.

We’d escaped.

But all I felt was anguish. This was the exact opposite of a victory.

I slowly got to my feet as the ship flattened out again, feeling numb. A part of me wanted to start bawling my eyes out, and another part of me was angry---with Morro, with my family, with everything. There were also countless other emotions I was feeling, but I couldn’t decide which one to let loose first. So instead, I bottled them up for now, and numbly stared at the floor.

“Whew!” Nya cried in relief. “That was close. The coast is clear.”

I said nothing, fearing I’d snap or break down crying if I did. I could feel the boys’ concerned gazes on me, but I ignored them, still looking at the floor.

Jay sighed. “Spill it, Sensei,” he demanded, turning toward our sensei with the others. “What just happened back there, and what have they done to my friend?!”

I looked over at Sensei, too, also wanting to hear the impending explanation.

“Yeah, Sensei,” Cole urged. “Who _was_ that?”

Sensei Wu sighed tiredly, an old wound haunting his expression. “You five were not my first pupils,” he revealed. “There was one before you.”

My eyes widened. Morro knew Sensei because...he used to be his student?!

“Huh?” Kai muttered.

“What?” Cole exclaimed.

Sensei Wu frowned deeply. “Morro,” he told us. “The Master of Wind.”

So my suspicions were correct: there _was_ a Master of Wind. And that was Morro.

Before I could process this any more, Nya spoke up. “Okay, now those lights scare me,” she said, pointing up at the radar on the monitor. “We got something on our six.”

I saw a giant red dot closing in on the Bounty, moving fast. It could only be one thing.

“Looks like your Master of Wind just caught his second wind,” Nya announced grimly.

It was amazing how so much could change in so little time. Just this morning, Lloyd and I had happily spent time together. And now… Now he’d been possessed by some creepy entity called Morro---and I had no idea how I was going to get him back.

What had begun as an absolutely perfect day had transformed into a horrifying nightmare.


	2. Episode 49: Ghost Story

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How to Stop Morro, Step 1: Learn Airjitzu
> 
> Shouldn't be too difficult...right?
> 
> (Also: Aurora needs a hug)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone, the response to the first chapter was AMAZING. So many comments and each one of them made my day! It made me realize just how many readers I've accumulated since I began this crazy journey. Did I ever think that I'd have this many people loving my writing and going nuts when I update? Uh, NO. NOT AT ALL.
> 
> Seriously, thank you all so much! I love each and every one of you.
> 
> Are you ready for more angst? I hope so. There's a lot more of it to come! Enjoy!  
> \----------------------------------------

The dark gray clouds continued their reign over the sky, only adding to the dire situation we found ourselves in. I stood amongst my brothers on the bridge of the Destiny’s Bounty, my gi mask concealing the sea of my emotions. The boys each had strapped weapons to their backs or belts, but I chose to carry nothing on me. I’d decided that if I was forced to hurt Lloyd, I’d rather it be with my elemental light than a sharp blade. Besides, I had a feeling that normal weapons wouldn’t do much good against the likes of Morro and his wind.

“Take positions,” Sensei Wu ordered us.

The five of us immediately moved out on his command, flipping over the bridge’s railing and onto the main deck of the ship. I scurried over to the side of the ship with my brothers, peering over the edge and looking behind us at our pursuer. When I caught sight of him, my eyes widened in horror.

Flying out of the dark abyss of clouds was a dark green and black power dragon, Morro riding on its back. It was a terrifying sight, his dragon like a monster straight out of a horror movie. No wonder he’d caught up with us so quickly! I had no idea he even knew how to summon a dragon. A part of me briefly wondered if he was using Lloyd’s ability to summon a dragon, or if he could actually do it on his own, even when not possessing the Green Ninja.

Whatever the reason, it didn’t matter much.

Morro quickly closed the distance between us, zooming up alongside the Bounty. He passed us, and as I looked out at him, I could see him staring down at us from above.

“Ah, I give you this much,” Cole commented. “That ninja never quits.”

I frowned at his words. “He’s no ninja,” I quietly muttered.

Morro’s dragon suddenly shot a green fireball straight at the left side of the ship.

“Port side!” Zane shouted.

Nya must’ve heard him from the helm, because the next moment, the ship veered sharply to the right, avoiding the fireball. The Bounty flew as fast as it could go, and I saw Morro and his dragon shoot up into the dark sky before diving back down at us again.

“The cannons!” Cole exclaimed.

Jay nodded at his idea, scurrying over to the ship’s newly-installed cannons. He hopped into the seat attached to one, and pointed it up at Morro, immediately shooting at him. He fired the cannon multiple times, but Morro’s dragon was too quick, swerving out of the way of each blast. His dragon then shot another fireball at the ship, which Nya barely managed to avoid.

Jay tumbled out of the cannon’s seat as the ship tilted, sliding over to where Sensei Wu stood. “Let me get this straight,” he yelled, holding his arms out to balance himself. “You're just telling us _now_ that you had another pupil before us, and now his cursed spirit has possessed Lloyd, all so that he can take your staff?!”

My attention went back up to Morro, ignoring Jay as he repeated what I already knew. As I warily watched him fly around our ship, an idea struck me. _How could I forget?!_ I scolded myself. _I have a dragon, too! Duh!_ I still had my elemental power, which meant that I could still summon my power dragon. I could summon it, fly over to Morro, and not only could I keep him from attacking the Bounty, I could also attempt to reach Lloyd again. I knew that Lloyd had to still be fighting Morro’s control as best he could, and perhaps if I talked to him again, I could reach him.

I knew what I had to do. Glaring at Morro flying above us, I concentrated, and called for my dragon.

...Nothing happened.

I paused for a moment, then tried again, focusing harder this time and closing my eyes. Still, the dragon refused to appear.

_Huh?_ What was going on?

I clenched my eyes shut, concentrating as hard as I could. I called for my power dragon, trying to unleash it from the light within me, pleading for it to appear so that I could try and fix this mess and save Lloyd. But, after a long minute of trying, I still had zero luck. My dragon would not appear.

What was going on? Why couldn’t I summon my dragon?! A part of me began to panic, fearing that I’d lost my powers like the boys had. But I knew I still had my them; after all, I knew too well what it felt like when my powers were gone. I still felt the warmth of my elemental light flowing through me.

Then why the heck couldn’t I summon my power dragon? It made no sense!

After thinking about it for a long moment, I suddenly realized what the problem was. The fault wasn’t with my elemental powers---it was with _me_.

I couldn’t summon my dragon...because I was afraid.

Not for myself, no. Not even for my friends.

I was afraid for Lloyd.

I was afraid that he… That I wouldn’t be able to save him…

And you couldn’t summon your power dragon if you were afraid.

“Morro won’t stop until he gets what he’s after,” Sensei Wu stated, the conversation still going as I tuned in again. “There’s a secret message engraved on it. All these years, I had no idea.”

That baffled me a little. Sensei Wu had carried that staff around for several years---decades, even. He rarely parted with it. And not once had he ever discovered that there was secret writing on it?

“Of course,” Jay exclaimed, clearly exasperated. “Hah! Just another day in Ninjago!”

A menacing roar turned our attention back to Morro. His dragon was flying up alongside the Bounty now, growing ever closer. I could see him glaring over at us, and I wondered what his plan was.

Cole made a concerned noise. “If this is as fast as the Bounty goes, I think we’re in for some serious trouble.”

He was definitely right about that.

Morro and his dragon swooped up into the sky again. The dragon leaned backward, and then caught a tailwind, turning upside down as he let it carry him above the Bounty. Once he was close enough, the dragon vanished, and Morro landed on the deck of the Bounty. He summoned twin blades as he faced us, letting out a sinister cackle. I fought a shiver, subconsciously stepping behind Zane.

“I need ink and parchment to make an imprint to see what’s on the staff,” Sensei Wu told us.

It was a good idea. And if Morro managed to steal the staff, we would at least still have the secret message.

Zane stepped in front of Sensei. “Aurora and I will take you to our quarters while Jay, Kai, and Cole will keep him busy.”

I wasn’t sure why he volunteered me, but I was grateful for it. Maybe he’d noticed me hiding behind him, or maybe he just wanted me away from Morro after how he’d been acting around me thus far. Maybe it was because I could best protect Sensei Wu.

Cole scoffed in disdain as Zane and I followed Sensei toward the entrance to the lower deck. “Oh, that’s honorable of you to nominate us.”

“Yeah, we didn’t fare so hot last time,” Kai agreed.

“Why is it _you_ get off with the easy task?!” Jay complained.

Zane turned back to him before jumping down below deck. “Because I’m the intelligent one,” he replied, a wee bit smugly.

I followed Zane down into the hatch, landing in a hallway below deck. Zane and I ran to Sensei Wu, leading him further down into the ship toward the sleeping quarters. We ran as fast as we could, knowing that Morro wouldn’t be far behind us. I had faith in our brothers, but from what I’d seen of Morro so far, it wouldn’t take him long to fight them off, especially since they had no powers.

The ship began to swerve uncontrollably, making our mad dash more difficult, but we pressed onward. At one point, things literally went sideways, throwing the three of us against the wall. The ship remained on its side, and we quickly stood back up, the hallway looking very different now that it was tilted.

At the other end of the hall where the hatch was, Morro appeared, immediately spotting us. I gulped.

“Our quarters aren’t much further,” Zane told Sensei Wu. “Go, Sensei! Aurora and I will hold him back.”

As our sensei continued onward, I stood next to Zane, blocking Morro’s path. As he approached us, I made myself momentarily banish my fear and replace it with determination. I glared at Morro, putting on a hostile expression as I readied myself for another fight with him. No matter what my feelings were, we had to keep him from reaching Sensei Wu. Morro had his mask on, I noted; that made it easier for me to see him as just Morro, instead of Morro possessing Lloyd.

Which would make it easier to fight him.

As we leapt into battle, I was very glad to have Zane by my side this time. I didn’t enjoy fighting Morro alone---or at all, really. The two of us double-teamed him, attacking from both directions. We punched and kicked and attacked, but he avoided us. At one point, he struck Zane and sent him flying backward toward the stairs. At the same moment, the ship was yanked back upright, making everyone lose their balance for a second. 

Zane quickly rejoined me, and we went to attack Morro again, only for the ship to take a nosedive, making the floor tilt backward. Morro fell over, losing his balance again. Zane and I managed to keep steady, but a crate came flying out of nowhere, hitting Zane head-on. It sandwiched him against the stairs, and as he tried to stabilize himself, something else whacked him on the head, knocking him out.

“Zane!” I cried. He was made of titanium, so I knew he’d be fine---but now he was out of the fight.

It was just me and Morro.

Again.

Steeling myself and suppressing my emotions, I faced Morro, letting my fury bubble up to the surface again. I stood there defensively, summoning my yellow light in the palm of each hand. I was determined to not let him get to Sensei Wu.

Morro’s expression turned amused again, and he mirrored my stance as we circled each other around the hallway. “The lovely Yellow Ninja,” he greeted, trying to be pleasant again. “Aurora, was it? Still armed with your elemental power, I see.”

“You don’t sound surprised,” I replied, keeping my voice steady. If I kept him talking, then Sensei would have enough time to record his staff’s secret message. Plus, I might learn something useful.

Morro chuckled. “I’m not,” he confirmed. “It seems as though your friends’ elemental powers are directly connected to the Green Ninja’s. Their powers came from his own. And once I took control, their powers switched off---but yours remained. Your element isn’t connected to him the same way theirs are.” He shrugged. “But I think it’s good that you still have your power.”

My brow furrowed, and I grew confused. “You do?”

He nodded. “I’ll admit that I’m curious to see what you’re capable of,” he explained. “Besides, if you didn’t have your power, then this whole thing wouldn’t be nearly as exciting. Might as well make it a challenge for myself, right?”

I bristled. This creep was really overconfident in his abilities. “Keep talking, and I’ll gladly smack that enormous ego out of you.”

“Oh come, now,” Morro calmly chided, making my hair stand on end. “We really shouldn’t be fighting one another.” He suddenly abandoned his defensive stance, and just stood there, non-threateningly. He then outstretched his hand toward me. “Why don’t you leave those pathetic ninja you call friends, and come take your rightful place at the Green Ninja’s side?”

_He wants me to what?_

Morro’s proposition caught me off guard. He...wanted me to join him? Why? I was one of the people trying to _stop_ him! I supposed it would explain his odd behavior toward me---how he made an effort to be pleasant only to me, even going so far as to compliment me even though I was his enemy. But I still couldn’t figure out why he had such a strong interest in me. I mean, why me? Why single me out? I hated being singled out!

Whatever the reason, it couldn’t be good.

Morro was right about one thing, though: my rightful place _was_ at the Green Ninja’s side. But he wasn’t the Green Ninja. Lloyd was. And he was _not_ Lloyd.

You’d think that with how much I’d shouted, threatened, and attacked him so far, he’d get the message to leave me alone. I supposed he needed a reminder.

My anger replaced my confusion once again. “I hate to tell you this--wait, no, I really don’t--but you are NOT the Green Ninja,” I exclaimed, my yellow light growing brighter. “You may be in control of Lloyd’s body, but you will NEVER be him. You will NEVER be the Green Ninja!”

That seemed to really strike a nerve, and Morro’s friendly demeanor was gone in a flash. He unleashed a blast of wind straight at me, but I was ready for it. I threw up a wall of light in front of me, blocking the powerful gust of wind before it could reach me. Morro growled in frustration as I made the light expand from the floor to the ceiling, creating a bright veil that separated me from him---and prevented him from getting to where Sensei Wu was.

“Argh!” he yelled. “Why stick by those sorry excuses for ninjas?” he asked me. “Your team will fall apart without its green leader!”

“You don’t know us very well, do you?” I replied, my tone confident. “This team can make it through absolutely anything, even without a leader to guide them!” I then paused, sighing. “If they want me to lead them, then I will. But mark my words: I’m going to take you down and save Lloyd if it’s the last thing I do! Sensei says you won’t give up---well, newsflash: neither will I!”

Morro tried to break down my wall of light with his wind, but I held firm, using all my power to keep him at bay. It was going pretty well---and then the Bounty suddenly tilted again. I maintained my balance, but there was a loud crash, and the entire ship jolted. I heard another crash behind me, and looked back to see a hole smashed open in the hull, exposing the hallway to the dark sky outside. 

I could do little more than gasp in surprise before the sudden opening sucked the air from the ship. I was wrenched backward toward the hole, my light vanishing as I lost concentration. I yelped as I barely managed to grab onto what was left of the wooden hull with a hand, stopping myself from flying out into the open air. My legs dangled behind me, and the wind whipped me around as I struggled to hang on.

“I’m coming, Aurora!”

The shout came from Zane, who had regained consciousness. I looked to see him rushing toward me, and I silently urged him to hurry. If I lost my grip and fell out, I wasn’t sure if I could summon my power dragon to save myself…

The ship tilted the other way, making Zane lose his balance and slide away from me. I whimpered as I struggled to keep my grip, praying that I wouldn’t let go. My hand held the wooden plank in a death grip, and I tried to pull myself back into the ship, but the wind outside kept pushing me in the opposite direction.

Meanwhile, Morro appeared nearby, chuckling in amusement at my predicament. “Need a hand, my lady?”

“Stay away from me!” I immediately exclaimed, rejecting him again. I might be fearing for my life, but I was _not_ about to accept help from the likes of him!

Morro sighed, shaking his head. “My offer still stands, you know,” he told me. “Think about it.”

Before I could tell him where he could shove his offer, Sensei Wu appeared behind him, staff in hand. “You want the staff?” he exclaimed, grabbing Morro’s attention. “Take it!”

He pulled his arm back, then tossed his father’s staff out of the hole. I took that to mean he’d successfully recorded the secret message; otherwise, I didn’t think he’d so willingly give it up. Morro reached for it, but missed. I tried to reach for it, too, but I reached too far and ended up losing my grip on the hull. As Morro leapt out of the ship, diving down after the staff, I tried and failed to grab back onto the ship. My hand reached upward uselessly, terror striking me as I began to fall.

That was when Zane’s hand shot down, grabbing mine.

“Got you, sister,” he stated.

I gasped, breathing a sigh of relief as he hauled me back up into the ship. Once I was safely inside, I hugged him, needing some comfort after all I’d been through in the past ten minutes alone.

“Thanks, Zane,” I told him.

The Destiny’s Bounty continued to take a nosedive, and unfortunately, I was about to add another crash-landing to my resume. Zane, Sensei Wu, and I all braced ourselves as the ship fell into the Forest of Tranquility, and eventually crashed hard into the trees.

. . .

“Okay, let’s never do _that_ again.”

Everyone silently agreed with Kai’s statement. My muscles were a little sore from bracing myself and having to keep my balance as the Bounty had spun out of control, and I knew that the others were probably in the same boat. Sensei Wu, Zane, and I were all still at the hole in the ship’s hull, and the others had quickly scurried down to join us as soon as the ship had ground to a halt. Thankfully, nobody was seriously injured.

Jay sighed in relief. “Ah, just think: if Sensei hadn’t gotten rid of the staff, it could’ve been worse.”

I found myself agreeing with him. It had been the only way we’d gotten Morro to leave us alone.

“Yeah, but now we don't know the message,” Cole pointed out.

“Not exactly,” Sensei announced. “I managed to make an imprint.”

Sensei Wu led us all into our sleeping quarters. On a previously blank wall were three images hastily recorded in ink, messy ink splatters surrounding them. I pulled my mask off to get a clearer view of them. The first symbol resembled a tornado, the second symbol looked like some sort of sword, and the third symbol was a skull.

Jay asked the question on everyone’s mind. “But what does it all mean?”

“My father told me long ago that he would leave a message leading me to his final resting place,” Sensei explained, stroking his beard thoughtfully. “After he passed, I looked everywhere for it, not knowing it was in my hand all this time.”

He walked past us as he talked, going back up to the deck of the ship. The six of us followed him outside.

My eyebrows furrowed. “Wait. You mean to tell us…”

“Yes,” he confirmed, sliding down a rope to the ground below. “These symbols will lead us to the tomb of the first Spinjitzu master. Only problem is, I haven't the foggiest idea what any of them mean.”

We all disembarked from the Bounty as well, following him down into the forest. I trailed at the back of the group, gazing sadly at the ship we called home. First Lloyd gets possessed, and now the Bounty was broken again. Why couldn’t things just stay the same? Why couldn’t our peace last?

I saw Kai make a determined face. “Well, if Morro is trying to find the tomb, we gotta find it first,” he declared.

I briefly wondered why in the world Morro wanted to find a tomb, of all things.

“Hey, maybe Misako can help decipher the clues since she's a total history buff,” Cole suggested.

Zane nodded at the idea, pulling out his falcon. “Pixal, release the falcon and give her our location.”

The shiny, brand-new titanium falcon came to life, flapping its wings as it left Zane’s hand. It soared off into the sky, and I watched it go, hoping that Misako was alright.

“Good,” Sensei said. “Then we set up camp.”

. . .

As the seven of us all helped set up a temporary camp, the dark clouds finally cleared overhead, exposing the night sky. I spotted a few stars, but they were so dim that I could barely see them. Usually, if I was feeling down or worried, I’d take time to stargaze and clear my head. But tonight, not even stargazing could calm the flurry of emotions bottled up inside me.

I numbly helped Cole find and carry fallen logs to our campsite next to the Destiny’s Bounty. I had hoped that keeping myself busy would take my mind off of everything---but, if anything, the slow walks back and forth from the camp made me dwell on my worries even more. Lloyd… Morro… My fear keeping me from summoning my dragon… Morro asking me to join him… Wanting to save Lloyd more than anything, but not having the faintest idea how to do it… 

Why Lloyd? Why did it have to be him? Why was it always someone I cared for?

Honestly...I’d rather it have been me. Sure, being possessed by a ghost was probably an utterly horrifying experience, but if it meant that Lloyd was safe, then it would be worth it.

But fate had decreed it be this way.

Cole, my big brother in every way except blood, had naturally taken note of my quiet, depressed state. He’d probably also noticed that I hadn’t said a word since we’d first left the shipwrecked Bounty. While the two of us were alone in the woods, he spoke up.

“Aurora?” His voice was tentative, and his expression was concerned. “Are… Are you okay?”

Was I okay? Physically, yes. But mentally? Emotionally? No. Absolutely not.

Cole probably knew this, but he only wanted to check up on me, to hear straight from me just how bad it was. To figure out how much he needed to be concerned.

A long, quiet second passed before I answered him. “I will be,” is what came out of my mouth, barely louder than a whisper. I hadn’t met his gaze the entire time, and I still didn’t, even as I spoke. I didn’t want him seeing the unshed tears in my eyes. I didn’t want him worrying about me when we should be worried about Lloyd. Once we had him back, I would be okay.

Cole dropped it for the moment, but I could still feel his concerned gaze on me as we hauled the fallen logs we found back to the campsite one by one.

All this time, ever since I’d been forcibly brought aboard the Bounty back at the tea shop, I’d been desperately trying not to break down and bawl my eyes out. A part of me really wanted to, now that we had a quiet moment and weren’t in the middle of a fight or crash-landing. But I forced my tears to stay back, ordering myself not to cry. I mean, crying over something like this was stupid. It wasn’t like Lloyd was dead! Why was I acting like he was gone forever? He’d been possessed---that was it! All I had to do was rescue him! I shouldn’t waste time crying over it.

And so, I bottled up my emotions once more. I could allow myself to process them once this was all over.

Cole and I hauled three fallen logs to our campsite for everyone to sit on. The other boys had gathered sticks and started a fire, and Nya had assessed the damage to the Destiny’s Bounty. Soon enough, we were all gathered around the warm campfire, sitting in silence. Nya, Zane, and Cole sat on one log, and Jay, Kai, and I sat on the other. Sensei Wu sat on the third log, facing the six of us. I sat sideways on the log, my knees pulled up to my chest and my chin resting on them. The others were angled toward our sensei, but I half faced away from them, staring blankly out into the dark forest. I didn’t want to see their looks of concern.

Eventually, Sensei Wu broke the silence. “Care to hear a ghost story?” he asked us.

“If it means saving Lloyd, of course,” Zane replied.

I still didn’t turn to face everyone, but I did tune into the impending conversation. While I didn’t really much want to hear more about Morro, I knew that I needed to. The more I learned about him, the more prepared I’d be to face him again. This was the giant explanation we’d all been waiting for, and I made sure to listen well. _For Lloyd_ , I told myself.

Sensei Wu began the story, and I could hear an old wound expressed in his tone. “Morro may have been my first pupil, but he was also my greatest regret,” he stated with deep sadness. “Before he was a cursed spirit, it wasn't I who found him...but he who found me. My brother had just gone off to train under Master Chen, which gave me time to attempt my hand at teaching. Morro was the perfect student. He did everything that was ever asked of him.”

_The perfect student, huh?_ I resisted the urge to shake my head. _Something must’ve gone terribly wrong._

“I had shown him things he had never seen,” Sensei continued. “And he showed me a few things, too. He had a power over the wind I had never seen. He was a descendant of an elemental master. It was then I thought I had found the one. Perhaps he...would wear green.”

Now _that_ grabbed my attention. I turned my head just enough to look at Sensei Wu, caught between surprised and curious. _Morro? The Green Ninja?_ From what I’d seen of Morro so far, I never would’ve considered him worthy of such an important role. But the Morro Sensei Wu had known in the past...he’d been a lot like us, hadn’t he?

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Back up!” Jay exclaimed, interrupting the story. “You're saying Morro, the Master of Wind, was gonna be the _Green Ninja_?!”

As the words left his mouth, the wind shifted ominously. It blew the fire sideways, feeding it oxygen and making the flames grow larger. Everyone stared at it in shock, and I forced myself not to shiver.

“Uh...did that just happen?” Cole nervously whimpered. “Maybe I don’t like ghost stories...”

“What happened next, Sensei?” Zane asked, urging him to continue.

Sensei Wu sighed. “After I told him he could be the Green Ninja, there was a hunger unmatched,” he explained. “There was an arrogance in him. I feared I had made a terrible mistake. But it wasn't for me to decide---it was destiny. When the Golden Weapons didn't respond like they did for Lloyd and Aurora later, I knew Morro wouldn't become one of the chosen ones.” He paused, shaking his head sadly. “He became obsessed to prove me wrong. To prove destiny wrong. He became reckless---he thought he was invincible.”

He went on to explain how Morro had gone so far as to disturb a Grundal to prove his worth. What he said about Morro definitely sounded familiar. Kai, Jay, Cole, and Zane had all been competing tirelessly when I’d first met them, and each had done many reckless things in order to try and prove that they were the Green or Yellow Ninja. Kai had even tried to retrieve a Fangblade from an active volcano to prove that he was one of the chosen ones. They’d been obsessed with it, and had only stopped once they’d each found their true potentials. No wonder Sensei Wu had chosen to keep the prophecy a secret from them at first; they’d reacted kind of like Morro had.

_That’s why I struck a nerve with him earlier_ , I realized. _He really thinks it’s his right to be the Green Ninja_. Is that why he chose to possess Lloyd? To fulfill his desire to be the Green Ninja?

I focused on the story again. “I knew right there and then I could not teach those who would not listen,” Sensei stated. “He told me he would find my father's tomb to prove he was worthy. I told him it could not be found; my father had left no message. I left the gate open in hopes he'd return...but he never came back.”

He grew quiet as he reached the end of the story, clearly still pained by the old wound. Even though Morro was awful, Sensei Wu still cared about him deep down, and obviously felt guilty about his failure. I sympathised with him---but then again, it wasn’t his fault that Morro had reacted badly. Even Kai had eventually gotten over the fact that he wasn’t destined to become the Green Ninja or Yellow Ninja. But Morro had allowed his jealousy to overtake him.

I still found myself unclear on one thing. I was loath to bring it up, but it was probably best to let the others know. Quietly exhaling, I gazed back out into the trees, deciding to share what Morro had said to me.

“He wants me to join him.”

Everyone’s attention turned to me as I spoke for the first time in an hour. I still couldn’t bring myself to face them, but I felt all their eyes on me.

“What?” Kai replied from next to me.

“Seriously?” Jay exclaimed in surprise.

I nodded, explaining. “Back on the ship, while we were fighting, he...asked me to join him.” I then snorted. “Of course, I told him to shove it, but I still can’t help but wonder…” As I spoke, I looked back over at Sensei, only to find a knowing look in his eyes as I met his gaze. “...why?”

Sensei Wu sighed, stroking his beard thoughtfully. “When I told Morro about the prophecy, I naturally told him all about the Yellow Ninja, too. He seemed excited at the idea of having an ally who would be just as powerful as he was, a companion that would fight at his side. As his arrogance grew, so did his desire to meet the Yellow Ninja, believing that they were the only one worthy enough of his friendship and respect.” 

Sensei shook his head, continuing on. “He even thought that, perhaps if he could find them, then destiny would recognize him as the Green Ninja.” He then looked up at me, giving me an unreadable look. “And now that he’s met the Yellow Ninja, it seems he still wants you on his side.”

So _that_ was why Morro wanted me to join him. That was why Morro was so interested in me, why he’d singled me out from the moment we met. Destiny had always meant for the Green Ninja and Yellow Ninja to meet, to become the two most powerful ninja ever, and to fight side by side. The two destinies had always been intertwined.

Morro believed it was his right to be the Green Ninja. 

...And I was the Yellow Ninja.

Morro felt entitled to the mantle of Green Ninja...and he felt entitled to me.

I couldn’t decide whether that immensely annoyed me or creeped me out.

“Oh,” was the response that came out of my mouth as I processed all this. “Great...”

Lloyd being possessed by some creepy, evil, psychotic, cursed ghost from the past was awful enough. He also had power over the wind, which was even worse. But the fact that the same ghost also wanted me to join his side because he felt like that was where I belonged? And he also sort of liked me? I mean, are you _kidding me_?

This was the largest headache I’d ever had.

Sensei Wu sighed tiredly. “I am saddened Morro was banished to the Cursed Realm,” he stated, his voice quiet. “But what worries me more is that he escaped---and for what reason?” His gaze went over all of us, his sadness replaced with resolve. “To save Lloyd and return your powers, you must find the tomb before he does. Or else.”

“...Or else what?” Jay hesitantly asked.

A grave expression crossed our sensei’s face as he responded. “Unspeakable power will curse us all.”

Jay laughed nervously. “Just another day in Ninjago, am I right?”

“This is different,” Kai stated. “Lloyd is at stake.”

I wholeheartedly agreed with him. This was way different than anything we’d ever faced---and more terrifying, too.

“But how can we compete against the Green Ninja?” Cole wondered. “He's more powerful than all four of us combined. Only Aurora’s power matches his. She’s the only one of us who stands any chance against him.”

I heard Nya huff as she was excluded.

I softly sighed to myself at Cole’s words. _No pressure or anything, right?_ Fate certainly did have a sense of humor. I was the one who had the best chance of defeating Morro in a fight, yet it was I who was the least willing to hurt Lloyd in any way.

“That was _before_ we lost our powers,” Zane grimly pointed out.

“But it's like Sensei said,” Kai stated. “Our real power doesn't come from our hands, it comes from inside here.” He tapped his chest meaningfully, and I was pleased that he’d learned his lesson. “This is Lloyd we're talking about. This is one mission we _cannot_ fail.”

_Tell me something I don’t know_ , I wanted to say. Failure wasn’t an option here. No matter what we faced, no matter how scary or powerful Morro was, and no matter how much he singled me out, we had to stop him and save Lloyd. One thing was for sure: one way or another, I was going to save my boyfriend.

And even though I was terrified, I would still do absolutely anything to bring him back.

. . .

I stood alone on a sandy beach, facing the vast expanse of the blue ocean.

...Which was strange, because I had no idea why, or how I got there.

My gaze was fixed on the horizon line that separated the sky from the sea, and the calm crashing of the waves soothed me. In a place like this, it was easy for me to forget all my worries and just admire the beauty of the world. A part of me wished that I had more time for quiet moments in nature like this; I got to travel to so many amazing places and had seen extraordinary things, but rarely had the time to stop and appreciate them.

As I inhaled the salty breeze gently caressing my face, I glanced around to see if I was still alone. Once I glanced to my right, I did a double-take, a gasp forcing its way from my mouth as I caught sight of the one person I wanted to see most:

Lloyd.

His back was to me, but it was definitely him. That trademark green on his ninja gi and his sandy blond hair were unmistakable. A smile erupted on my lips, and I immediately went to him.

“Lloyd!” I cried out in utter joy. I was so excited that I nearly tripped on the sand from how fast I was moving my feet. I quickly navigated the shifty sand piles and arrived where Lloyd stood. I leapt at him and wrapped my arms around him in a hug from behind, laughing in immeasurable delight and relief. “You don’t know how much I missed you!”

I burrowed my face into his shoulder, inhaling his familiar scent and sighing in contentment. I hugged him tightly, already planning on never letting him go ever again.

It took a long minute for me to realize that he wasn’t hugging me back. He hadn’t even _moved_ or said a word.

Just as I was about to speak again, Lloyd’s shoulders began shaking. The movement made me lift my head, my joy slowly morphing into confusion as my smile disappeared. Was he crying? I tried to glance at his face, to see if there were any tears.

Then, Lloyd began to make noise. But they weren’t sobs---he was _laughing_.

And it wasn’t a happy or mirthful laugh, either. It was dark, sinister, and creepy.

My grip on him loosened. “L-Lloyd…?”

Lloyd’s laughter only grew louder and more intense, and as it did, his voice began to change. His familiar tone was soon gone, replaced with a deeper voice that I had heard far too many times already. As he laughed, his skin turned a pale green, and his hair went dark as night.

It was deja vu.

_Morro!_

As soon as his complexion changed, I let go of him, yanking myself backwards. “No!” I screamed in protest, my confusion turning into horror. “ _No_!”

Lloyd--now possessed by Morro--turned around to face me, still laughing maniacally. His dark eyes bore into my soul as he laughed and laughed and laughed and just wouldn’t _stop_.

“Let him go!” I shouted, my voice cracking with fear. “You hear me?! Let Lloyd _go_!”

Morro still did nothing but laugh as if this was the most hilarious joke he’d ever heard. The previously bright blue sky went dark, and the gentle breeze picked up speed, turning into a gale-force wind that whirled and whipped around us. The wind wasn’t natural---it was Morro’s wind.

I took a few tentative steps backward, but still fought with my words. “GO AWAY!” I bellowed over the howling of the wind. “GO AWAY, MORRO! LEAVE LLOYD ALONE!!”

My words only made Morro cackle louder, and lightning crashed behind him, adding to the terrifying intensity of the situation. My eyes were as wide as they could go, and I instinctively hugged myself as the wind seemed to close in, wildly whipping my hair. Morro then raised his hands, and before I could move, he sent a powerful gust of wind straight at me. It knocked me off my feet, sending me flying backwards.

“NO!” I yelled as I flew through the air, away from Morro---and away from Lloyd.

“ _Aurora?! Aurora!_ ”

Someone was calling my name, but I could barely hear them through the roar of the wind.

“ _Aurora! Wake up! Wake up!!_ ”

My eyes flew open, and I sprung upright in my blankets, breathing heavily. My heart pounded so hard inside my chest that I was sure it was going to burst out. My eyes frantically darted around, expecting to see Morro, his insane laughter still echoing inside my head.

“Aurora?”

My head whipped to the side to find the source of the familiar voice. It was Kai, kneeling at my side next to where I’d been laying on the ground. Concern was written all over his face, and he reached out to gently touch my shoulder.

“It’s okay,” he assured me, smiling softly. “It was only a dream. You’re safe.”

_It was only a dream?_ I repeated the words inside my head, slowly convincing myself of them. _It was only a dream._

Still terrified and disoriented by the nightmare, I leaned over and hugged Kai, needing more comfort than him just touching my shoulder. He wrapped his arms around me, holding me close as I fought to control my breathing. I closed my eyes, telling myself that it had only been a terrible dream, and tried to forget it. I strained my ears and focused on the sounds of nature around me: birds chirping, leaves rustling, and the overwhelmingly peaceful silence that filled the rest of the space. I let the sounds drown out the echoes of Morro’s terrible laughter, and I began to calm myself down. Eventually, my breathing evened, my muscles untensed, and I relaxed.

After fully calming down, I felt a little silly. I hadn’t needed anybody to comfort me from a nightmare since I was ten years old. I pulled away from Kai’s embrace, looking down at my hands.

“Sorry…” I mumbled, a little embarrassed.

“Hey, don’t apologize,” Kai told me, still smiling. “Nothing to be sorry for.”

A moment passed, then a curious question popped to mind. “How did you...know I was…?”

Kai understood what I meant, even as I trailed off. “Well, it’s kind of hard not to know you’re having a nightmare when you’re shouting things in your sleep.”

He’d meant to say it jokingly, but it made me wince. “I was?” I asked, growing embarrassed again. “I didn’t wake you up, did I?”

“Nah, the walloper was the one who woke me up,” Kai informed me, glaring over at a nearby walloper in disdain. I hadn’t noticed the hairy creature until now, and it mooed at me as I caught sight of it.

“Oh...good…” I mumbled, looking down at the blanket crumpled up in my lap. My gaze briefly scanned the camp, seeing that Kai and I were the only ones here. The fire had died to a pile of smoldering embers.

Kai placed a hand on my shoulder. “I only heard a few of the things you said, but I can imagine what you were dreaming about,” he told me, gently. “Feel like talking about it?”

A part of me wanted to. Perhaps it would make me feel better---and perhaps I could even unleash that impending crying episode that I was still forcing myself to keep down. But I didn’t want to bring up the nightmare again, not when I had just calmed down from it. I just wanted a few nice, peaceful moments where I didn’t have to talk or even think about Morro.

I gave Kai an apologetic look, shaking my head. “Not right now,” I answered.

Concern passed through his gaze again, but he nodded in understanding. “If you’re sure,” he said, standing up. He offered me a hand, and I grabbed it, letting him pull me to my feet as my blanket fell off of me. “Come on, I think the others are over near the Bounty.”

The two of us walked away from our temporary campsite and back to our beloved ship---which was, sadly, still crashed in the dirt. Cole and Jay were sitting on a fallen log, happily eating bowls of noodles. Zane stood over by Nya, who was also eating noodles. Sensei Wu stood at the edge of the group, talking with Misako, who I was relieved to see unharmed. She held a parchment between them, and they were quietly discussing whatever was on it. Four more wallopers meandered about, minding their own business.

Jay grinned as he spotted us approaching. “Morning, sleepyheads!”

“Misako got our message,” Kai observed as we walked over to them. “And you made breakfast. Good. I’m starving!”

Nya pointed over to an empty log. “We put your plates down over there.”

Kai and I looked back, only to see a walloper munching on one of the bowls of noodles. Kai groaned in dismay, shaking his head. He then picked up the untouched bowl, handing it to me.

“Here. You take it,” he said.

I frowned as he handed me the bowl. “But you just said that you were starving.”

“I’ll live,” he assured me, giving me a small smile to ease my worries.

I sensed that he refused to budge on this, no matter how hungry he was. So, I relented, briefly smiling for his sake. “Thanks, Kai,” I told him.

I walked over to the log Jay and Cole sat on, holding the hot bowl of noodles with both hands. I sat next to Cole and set the bowl in my lap. Honestly, I wasn’t very hungry, and I barely picked at my food. The nightmare was also still haunting the back of my mind, making it difficult for me to focus on anything else. It took me a moment, but I pulled myself together. Kai had chosen to give this food to me instead of eating it himself; I would feel bad if I didn’t eat it. And besides, even if I wasn’t hungry, I’d still need energy for the long metaphorical road ahead of us. To save Lloyd, I would need to be at full strength---which meant I needed to eat. So, I forced myself to stop picking at my food and began properly eating it. I tasted none of it, but still made myself eat it anyway.

...I missed Lloyd.

“As far as I knew, the tomb was only a fable,” Misako said as we all ate, “until I saw what’s on the staff.”

Curious, Kai walked over to peer down at the parchment Misako was holding. I peered over and saw that it was the three symbols Sensei Wu had copied from his father’s staff the night before.

“Does she know what the symbol means?” Kai asked the others.

“Not the last two yet,” Cole replied. “But get this: the first symbol means Airjitzu.”

I scrunched up my nose at the strange name. _Is that another form of Spinjitzu or something?_

“Airjitzu?” Kai echoed, leaning over Misako’s shoulder to see the symbols for himself.

Miasko explained. “A lost martial art created by Sensei Yang, who passed years ago. If mastered, it allows one to temporarily take flight.”

_Wait, really?_ I thought in surprise.

Jay leaned around Cole to give me a giant smile. “You hear that, Aurora? We get to _fly_!”

Getting the sense that Jay was attempting to cheer me up, I managed to make a half-hearted smile for him. “Cool,” I replied, trying (and kind of failing) to sound excited.

“You haven’t found it yet,” Sensei Wu reminded him. “The Scroll of Airjitzu is well-guarded in the ancient library of Domu.”

Zane spoke up from where he stood next to Nya. “Forgive me if I speak out of turn, but my records reveal it was recently stolen.”

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. _Of course it was._

Jay gasped in shock. “By who?!”

Cole sighed. “Ah, let me guess. Ronin.”

Nya beat me to asking the big question. “Who’s Ronin?”

“Let’s just say he’s not a friend,” Kai informed her.

_Of course he’s not a friend._ This just kept getting better and better.

Jay smiled. “But this is good news.”

“Uh, how so?” Cole inquired.

Jay grunted in frustration, like the answer was obvious. “‘Cause if Morro doesn’t know this, he’ll be heading to the _library_.”

“And Ronin's most likely holed up in the village of Stiix, which gives us a head start,” Cole finished, cottoning onto Jay’s realization.

That gave me a bit of hope. If we could get the Airjitzu scroll before Morro did, then we’d have a big advantage over him. I quietly sighed at myself. _I was too busy focusing on all the negative things that I failed to see the advantage we have here._ I was being too mopey. But could you really blame me? _Focus on the positive things. You can’t help Lloyd if all you think about are the hurdles in your way._

“Then it's set,” Sensei Wu declared. “The ninja will head to Stiix. We three will head back to the tea shop and start deciphering the next clues.”

Nya immediately protested. “But Lloyd's my friend, too. The ninja will need my help to---”

“I’m sorry, Nya,” Sensei interrupted. “You’re sitting this one out. There’s too much to be done here.”

I frowned, wondering why Sensei wasn’t letting Nya come with us. After all, we’d probably need all the help we could get. I sensed that our sensei had a very good reason for benching Nya, but I knew that he probably wouldn’t tell me if I asked him.

As he, Nya, and Misako began cleaning up our campsite, the five of us ninja convened near the herd of wallopers.

“Alright, guys. We’ve got to get to Stiix as quickly as possible,” Cole stated. He gestured around to Zane, Kai, Jay, and himself. “Since the four of us don’t have our powers, we can ride the wallopers. And since Aurora still has her dragon, she can---”

“N-No!”

The word had loudly blurted from my mouth before I could stop it. The four boys turned to me in confusion, and I suddenly felt shy at their attention. None of them knew that my fear was preventing me from summoning my dragon.

“No,” I repeated, softer this time. “I-I’m sorry, I… I can’t use my dragon.”

The four of them exchanged confused looks with one another.

“You...can’t?” Cole echoed.

Kai frowned in concern. “Why not?”

I didn’t want to admit to them that it was because I was afraid. Afraid of losing Lloyd. I didn’t want them worrying about me---not when we should be worrying about getting him back. But what to tell them instead?

“I-I don’t know,” was the lie that came out of my mouth. The words sounded a little snappier than I intended them to. “I just can’t, okay?”

My four brothers seemed more confused. They also didn’t seem very convinced with my reply. Thankfully, though, they dropped the subject in favor of saving time.

“Okay, then,” Cole slowly said, getting back on track. “We’ll all take the wallopers.”

The five of us each approached a walloper. I walked up to one, reaching out my hand to pet its snout. It mooed in a comforting way, as if it knew of my inner turmoil. I gave it a small smile of thanks before gently mounting it.

Kai was the only one hesitating to mount his walloper. “Uh, okay,” he muttered nervously. “Stand still.” He tried jumping up on the walloper, but ended up falling over the other side. He then hopped back up on top of it, gingerly reaching for the walloper’s horns. “Don’t worry, sis,” he told Nya as he seemed to gain control of his walloper. “With me in charge, the scroll will be ours in no time.”

I frowned. _And when did we elect him leader?_

“‘Cause time flies when you know Airjitzu!” Jay exclaimed in excitement. “Get it? Ha ha ha!”

“Be careful, ninja,” Sensei warned us, “for the path we seek is never a straight line. Rely on each other to guide your way.”

_Rely on each other…_ Right. We were a team. I had to keep in mind that I wasn’t in this alone. I never was.

Jay, Cole, Zane, and I lightly heeled our wallopers in the sides, and they began trotting forward. Kai, meanwhile, was having trouble getting his to move, no matter how much he kicked it.

  
  
“Wait up!” he called after us as we started to leave. “ _I’m_ supposed to be leading here!”

. . .

The five of us traveled across the land for hours, following the bright sun. Our journey eventually led us out of the forest and into the vast desert. The sun’s rays were hot on our faces, but thankfully it wasn’t too terrible. The breeze occasionally pushed tumbleweeds across the sand, but other than that, we were the only things moving across the desolate plain.

Kai was still leading the charge, as nobody had really objected to him leading---yet. Jay, Cole, and Zane were in the middle of singing “Bottles of Tea on the Wall” to help pass the time. They’d begun at one-hundred thousand, and as they sang on and on and on, I began to question their sanity. If this were a normal trip, I probably would’ve been singing along with them (as long as I could stand it, anyway). But I was too lost in my thoughts, trailing at the back of the group as I tried not to mope.

“ _Ninety-two thousand, eight-hundred ninety eight bottles of_ _tea_ _on the wall, ninety-two thousand, eight-hundred ninety eight bottles of tea. You take one down and pass it around, ninety-two thousand, eight---_ ”

“Enough!” Kai bellowed, completely fed up with all the singing. “I’m really thirsty, so we don’t need to keep singing about tea!”

I was secretly relieved that he’d interrupted them; the redundant lyrics had started to really annoy me.

“Ho ho!” Cole chuckled. “Someone should’ve had their breakfast.”

That made me hang my head, feeling guilty for eating the last bowl of noodles earlier. Kai had offered them to me, true, but I hadn’t even been hungry. I should’ve politely declined and let him eat them.

“Argh! We’ve been following the sun for hours,” Kai complained. “We should’ve arrived at Stiix already.”

Zane frowned. “But Stiix is on the eastern coast,” he informed him. “We should be riding _away_ from the sun.”

I quietly facepalmed. _Are you kidding me?_

“Why are you just telling us _now_?!” Jay yelled, bringing his walloper to a screeching halt.

Zane shrugged as we all stopped. “Because Kai wanted to lead.”

“Great!” Cole exclaimed. “We’re officially lost! You know, we had a leg up, but nooooo! Kai wanted to lead!”

I grew dismayed. We’d lost our head start; the one advantage we’d had was gone. How would we ever beat Morro to the Scroll of Airjitzu now?

_Remember! Try to be positive!_ I reminded myself.

“I swear, my gut says we should be following the sun,” Kai argued.

Jay scoffed at him. “You’re arguing with a Nindroid. He’s a walking computer!” He turned to the rest of us, lowering his voice. “Why is it when Lloyd's gone, we look to Kai? We should really be following Zane.”

“You know, he is the most logical choice,” Cole agreed.

Zane was the smartest of us all, so they did have a point. Perhaps he should be leading us. _He’d probably do a better job than I would right now…_ I felt like I was too emotionally imbalanced for the role at the moment.

Zane began to turn his walloper around to go the other way. Cole, Jay, and I all followed suit. Kai, however, stayed put.

“Well, _I_ still think it’s that way,” he insisted, pointing in the direction of the sun. “And when I learn Airjitzu first, we’ll see who’s right.”

Apparently, his walloper didn’t agree, because it began following us in the other direction.

“Hey, no!” Kai protested, trying to steer the walloper back the way he wanted to go. “This way! Ugh!” His walloper mooed indignantly, and Kai eventually lost the struggle. “Fine. We’ll follow Zane,” he grumbled.

We all began following Zane in the complete opposite direction of the sun. It didn’t even take ten minute before he seemed to spot something ahead, urging his walloper into a canter.

“He’s already found something,” Cole announced in excitement. “Let’s go!”

The rest of us followed Zane over to what he’d discovered. To my surprise, it was a set of train tracks. They stretched out far in either direction, and I couldn’t see an end to either side.

“Train tracks,” Cole observed.

“They lead straight to Stiix,” Zane announced, pointing east.

Jay chuckled. “Hey, you hear that, Kai? They lead to Stiix. We follow Zane, and look what happens!”

I frowned. Sure, Kai hadn’t done a very good job of leading so far, but Jay didn’t have to rub it in. _Boys will be boys_ , I reminded myself.

“But Sensei said the path we seek is _never_ a straight line,” Kai argued.

Zane steered his walloper to the left, starting to walk alongside the train tracks. Jay and Cole immediately followed him. “He also said rely on each other to guide,” Zane reminded him.

“Yeah, Kai,” Jay agreed, scoffing obnoxiously.

The three of them resumed their travel song. “ _Ninety-two thousand, eight-hundred ninety seven bottles of_ _tea_ _on the wall, ninety-two thousand, eight-hundred ninety seven bottles of tea. You take one down…_ ”

I rolled my eyes, bringing my walloper up to walk alongside Kai’s. “Just ignore him,” I muttered.

Kai shook his head. “I was so sure…” He trailed off, sighing. “Do you think they’re right about this?”

I shrugged, turning my gaze onward. “All that matters is that we reach Stiix as soon as possible.”

We might’ve lost our lead, but I still refused to let Morro get his hands on that scroll. I was determined to find it first. And once we found it, I’d do everything in my power to make sure he never got it.

. . .

“ _...it around, no more bottles of tea on the wall!_ ”

The boys all laughed mirthfully as the song finally came to a close. Even Kai had eventually joined in, singing to the end with the others. They’d had such fun singing, and I’d considered joining in once or twice...but I still didn’t feel up to it.

“That was enjoyable,” Zane stated when all the laughter died down. “Let’s do it again.”

“No!” the others immediately protested, evoking another round of laughter.

The sight of my brothers enjoying themselves so much actually made me smile, cheering me up a little.

Jay sighed. “I wish Lloyd was here for that.”

And now the smile was gone. My sadness quickly returned, and I visibly deflated. “Me too…” I mumbled.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Jay glance back at me in concern, looking guilty for saying what he did. Cole shot him a small glare, silently scolding him for bringing it up.

“So do I,” Kai agreed. “But we’ll find the tomb. And then, we’ll save him.” He directed the last part mostly at me, giving me a reassuring smile when I glanced up at him.

I bottled up my sadness again for now, nodding at him in agreement. I replaced my sorrow with determination, willing it to last. _Stop acting like a sad, lost puppy, Aurora. We’re gonna save Lloyd. You told Morro that you’d take him down and save Lloyd if it was the last thing you’d do._ That was a vow I intended to keep.

“I wonder why the tomb’s so important,” Cole wondered, thankfully changing the subject.

“I don’t know,” Jay replied. “Sensei says it holds unspeakable power.”

_There’s probably some ancient artifact in there that Morro wants to get his creepy ghost hands on_ , I guessed.

“It's the tomb of the first Spinjitzu master,” Kai reminded us. “Whatever secret it holds, it must be protected.”

After a few more minutes of riding our wallopers onward, we came across a small train station. It was made of wood, and there was one small building on the platform. A water tower also stood next to it, not looking very stable on its thin wooden stilts.

“Let’s take a break here,” Zane decided.

I felt relieved at his suggestion. Not only did the poor wallopers need a break from walking, but I desperately wanted to stretch my legs. 

The five of us parked our wallopers next to the station platform, hopping off of them and walking up to explore the station. I couldn’t tell whether it was abandoned or just so in the middle of nowhere that nobody had been there in a while. The full moon was very bright, and I could perfectly see tonight without the use of my light. I supposed that was one good thing about the desert: you always had a clear view of the moon.

Suddenly, I heard the sound of somebody cackling off in the distance. It was very faint, and for a moment I thought I’d imagined it. But the boys halted at the sound of it, having heard it, too.

“Uh, did you hear that?” Cole asked us.

I nodded. “Uh-huh,” I mumbled nervously.

“Yeah, I did, too,” Jay replied. “But...we’re in the middle of nowhere.”

The laugh sounded again, a bit louder this time. It was sinister and creepy, and sent a chill down my spine. I gazed in every direction, trying to pinpoint the source and trying not to flash back to my horrible nightmare. The boys spread out across the platform, and I stuck by Kai.

“I don’t know,” he said, “but be on guard.”

My gaze went up to the bright full moon again. As I did, a loud screech split the air, and something eerily green flashed into existence in the sky. It was a glowing green motorcycle, with someone sitting at its helm, swinging a long green chain around in the air above himself. He soared through the sky, heading right for us.

“Eek!” I exclaimed, startled by his sudden appearance.

“What is _that_?!” Jay exclaimed as we all pulled our gi masks on.

The motorcycle landed on the ground, zooming at us head-on. Zane tried throwing a shuriken at its driver, but it went right through the guy.

“Watch out!” Cole cried.

We all dived out of the way as the motorcycle drove onto the station platform, its driver cackling madly. It drove to the other side, then began to turn around for another charge.

“My shurikens,” Zane exclaimed in surprise. “They went right through him.”

“Because he’s a _ghost_!” Jay shouted.

My eyebrows furrowed in worry. _Another ghost?_ Sensei had said something to Morro about “summoning his friends.” I guess by friends, he’d meant other ghosts. _Great. That’s just what we need. More ghosts._

“Morro must’ve summoned some friends,” Kai stated, realizing the same thing I had. “We’re sitting ducks out in the open. We need to take shelter!”

As he said it, the ghost circled the station on his motorcycle. Then, he veered abruptly, charging at us again.

“Watch out!” I shouted.

The five of us dived out of the way again. The ghost turned his vehicle, immediately gearing up to try and run us over again.

“Oh God, he’s coming for another pass!” Jay yelled.

As we all leapt out of the way again, the ghost crashed his bike into the small building on the platform, completely destroying it.

“There is no shelter!” Cole exclaimed.

The ghost used what was left of the roof as a ramp, driving his motorcycle onto it and soaring over our heads. As he did, he swung his glowing green chain at us. There was a long, jagged blade at the end, and the five of us ducked and flipped to avoid it. As he landed on the platform’s other side, he swung his chain at one of the wallopers. When the blade struck it, to my horror, the poor animal turned into a transparent, green ghost.

I stood there stunned for a moment. _What the heck?_

“He turned my walloper into a ghost!” Cole exclaimed angrily. “ _No one_ turns my walloper into a ghost!”

Jay jumped down to where the wallopers were gathered, waving them off. “Get out of here! Hyah! Hyah!”

The five wallopers didn’t need much encouragement from him. Frightened, they turned tail and galloped off into the night. Meanwhile, both the ghost and his motorcycle had seemingly vanished into thin air.

“Where did he go?” Kai asked as the five of us stood in a defensive circle. “I can’t see him.”

“Stay together,” Zane urged. 

We all backed up to be closer to each other. The boys all held out their katana, and I stood in a defensive stance, ready to summon my light. If the boys’ weapons couldn’t harm the ghost, then I wasn’t sure what my elemental power would do---but I had to try anyway.

“If our weapons do nothing, HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO FIGHT A GHOST?” Jay shouted, letting his panic take over.

“Good question,” Kai replied.

For a long moment, we all gazed around frantically, not seeing him anywhere. His creepy laughter echoed around us, and I couldn’t tell which way it was coming from. Then, with a sudden flash of green, he appeared again, charging straight for us.

“There he is!” Kai alerted us.

Cole quickly turned to me. “Aurora, try using your powers on him!”

I nodded. Turning to face the ghost, I chased away my fear and glared at him. Summoning my yellow light in my hand, I quickly aimed then shot a beam of light directly at the ghost. To my dismay, it went right through him, just as Zane’s shuriken had.

I gulped as the ghost continued zooming right for us. “Well...that didn’t work,” I grumbled. I guess having no physical form meant that you weren’t affected by physical elemental attacks. _Figures_.

“Watch out!” Kai cried.

I was just barely able to leap over the giant motorcycle with the boys as it attempted to trample us. The ghost swerved his motorcycle to the right, swinging his chain at us again as he drove away. It struck Kai’s sword, then fell to the ground, wrapping around his leg.

“Huh?” Kai exclaimed, looking down. “That’s not good.”

The next moment, his feet were yanked out from under him, and he was dragged behind the motorcycle as it zoomed across the sand. He screamed, then used his sword to whack the chain, freeing himself. He scooted to a stop on the sand, looking back and waving his sword at us. “I’m okay, everyone! I’m okay!”

I let out a sigh of relief.

“He’s gonna pick us off one by one, isn’t he?” Cole said, fear edging his tone. “There’s nothing we can do.”

I didn’t want to believe that. There was always something we could do. I looked around, noticing that the ghost had vanished again. _Now where did he go?!_

Kai had stood back up, and was searching for him, too. That was when the sand beneath him began to glow a familiar eerie green.

“He’s underground!” he announced.

He picked up his sword and leapt out of the way just in time. The ghost burst from the sand atop his motorcycle, hovering in the air and swinging his chain as he circled us.

Cole held out his arms, pushing me, Jay, and Zane away. “Stand back!” he ordered us, stepping forward.

As the ghost swung his chain at us again, Cole held up his katana in its path, causing it to wrap around the blade. He then quickly ran over to the water tower, wedging the end of the chain between the stilts. When the chain pulled taut, the ghost was yanked out of his motorcycle, crashing down onto the train tracks. The giant, scary motorbike stopped glowing. In a flash of green, it turned back into an ordinary motorcycle, crashing uselessly to the ground.

The five of us tentatively walked over to peer down at the ghost laying on the tracks. For a moment, he didn’t move. Then, he groaned, and started to stand back up. We all screamed in terror as he glared at us, readying for a fight again.

Then, out of nowhere, a loud train horn blared in the night. It was followed by the train itself, zooming across the tracks and colliding with the ghost head-on. The boys cheered in triumph, and I found myself joining in, smiling beneath my mask.

“Nice one, Cole,” I praised.

Cole laughed, high-fiving Jay. “Now _that’s_ how you stop a ghost.”

As the train rushed by, the ghost suddenly popped out of it, unscathed. His sudden appearance made me scream, and the others let out small exclamations of surprise as we all backed away. The ghost cackled, raising the handle of his chain high over his head.

“You think a _train_ can stop a ghost?” he mocked, his voice extremely raspy. “Your world will pay dearly when Morro finds the tomb! And when he does, he will take possession of the---”

He’d tugged on his chain as he spoke, which was still stuck in the stilts of the water tower. He’d yanked it too hard, causing the skinny wooden beams to break. The water tower toppled over, the large barrel tilting toward him and spilling its contents all over the ghost. He froze as he was doused in water, and began shaking. He glowed brighter and brighter, then eventually combusted, dissolving into a bright puddle of green goo.

_...Huh?_

The five of us all exchanged bewildered looks, tugging our masks off.

“What, uh… What just happened?” Cole asked.

“He went...ka-blooey,” Zane replied, sounding just as confused.

Jay frowned. “Yeah, but he was just gonna tell us what was in the tomb! Couldn't it have waited another second?”

“We may not know what's in the tomb,” Kai said, “but we do know one thing: how to stop a ghost.”

“Water?” Jay, Cole, and Zane all guessed.

I huffed. “Too bad none of us are Elemental Masters of Water…” That would be a huge help right now.

“No kidding,” Cole agreed.

Zane hummed in thought. “Unusual. I guess it’s true. The path we seek is never a straight line.”

“Uh, speaking of straight lines,” Jay spoke up, “if that train’s heading to Stiix, wouldn’t it be faster if we…?”

He trailed off, and the rest of us all realized what he was saying. Not wasting another second, the five of us leapt off the platform and sprinted down the tracks, chasing after the train as it chugged into the night.


	3. Episode 50: Stiix and Stones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Who knew that obtaining an ancient scroll would be so difficult?
> 
> Almost as difficult as bottling up all your emotions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 50TH EPISODE!!! Woo-hoo! That's shocking. Have I really written 50 freaking chapters of this fanfiction? I have. Wow.
> 
> I really amped up the drama in this one. And, of course, still lots of angst! Be prepared! As always, I hope y'all enjoy!  
> \---------------------------------

At last, we arrived at the sketchy fishing village of Stiix. After barely catching up with the train, the five of us had hitched a ride on it the rest of the way to the village. We’d hopped off at a train station near the Endless Sea, and from there, it wasn’t long before we found the long, rickety bridge that led out from the coast and over to Stiix. The entire place was suspended on several stilts above the water. Everything was made from wood, from the houses to the fishing docks. The numerous lights scattered about the village all glowed with a dim yellow-orange light, but they did nothing to dispel the light haze that surrounded the place.

As we approached the entrance, I spotted a fisherman standing on top of a big neon sign that stood above the bridge. He seemed to be fishing. Why he was fishing from such a high vantage point, I had no clue. He noticed our group as we approached, and gave us a nod.

“Welcome to Stiix,” he greeted. “Watch your step.” Just then, his fishing pole was yanked in his hands. “Oh! I caught one!” he exclaimed, struggling to reel in his catch. “It’s a big fella. Whoa! Whoa!” He lost the struggle and was yanked off the sign, plummeting into the sea below.

Everybody except Kai rushed over to the side of the bridge. Thankfully, the fisherman was okay, resurfacing a second later. He groaned in frustration, spitting out seawater.

I heard a nervous whimper from behind us, and we turned to see Kai sitting down, looking very worried.

“I didn’t know you were afraid of heights,” Jay said.

“I’m fine with heights,” Kai told him. “It’s water I hate.”

Zane frowned in confusion. “Didn’t seem to have a problem before.”

He was right. Kai had never had such a fear of water before. I had a distinct memory of him saying that he would swim the entire ocean just to get off the Dark Island and back to Ninjago.

Kai stood up and followed us as we continued onward. “ _Before_ I could make a fire dragon at will. Since Morro's taken over Lloyd and our power’s gone, I haven't felt---”

He cut himself off with a yelp as the plank he stepped on broke underneath him. He hung onto the plank in front of him, his feet dangling above the water below. I immediately rushed over and helped him back up onto the bridge.

“Well, now that we know that ghosts don’t like water either, at least we should feel safe surrounded by it,” Cole pointed out.

That was one good thing going for us. _If I push Morro into the water, will he evaporate and stop possessing Lloyd?_ I wondered. It couldn’t be that easy, could it?

The five of us reached the end of the bridge, walking into the village itself. It was definitely a backwater place; the buildings were old and run-down, and there was an unpleasant stench of fish in the air that nearly made me pull my mask on in order to block it out.

Jay pinched his nose, waving the smell away. “Ugh, what a dump,” he complained. “You’d think the thief who stole the Scroll of Airjitzu would have better taste.”

“Uh, this is Ronin we're talking about,” Cole reminded him. “He'd steal the sea, if it were worth anything. We just have to figure out which rock he's under and get to the scroll before Morro does.”

Right. That was all that mattered. Getting the scroll---and saving Lloyd.

“Let’s split up and start looking,” Zane suggested.

The five of us searched the village for anywhere that could be Ronin’s hideout. Honestly, the whole place seemed suspicious to me, but perhaps that was just because I was so on edge. It wasn’t long until Kai spotted a pawn shop that looked just a little too sketchy, and we all ventured inside.

The place was a mess. Items of every shape and size were scattered everywhere, on shelves, on tables, even in boxes littering the floor. I carefully searched the place for anything that looked like an Airjitzu scroll, but so far, I wasn’t having any luck. Some of the items in the shop seemed strikingly familiar.

“Wait a minute,” Cole interjected, making the rest of us turn our attention to him. He held up a tall, shiny trophy, with a familiar-looking blade sticking out of the top. “This is my dad’s Blade Cup trophy! What’s it doing in a pawn shop?”

My eyebrows furrowed in bewilderment. “That… That literally makes no sense,” I muttered. I’d thought that the four Fang Blades had vanished after the Great Devourer had been unleashed. So how in the world was one of them right here, in the trophy? _Is it a replica or something?_ I was so confused.

“Selling stolen goods?” Kai stated. “Hah. Sounds like we might have stumbled on the right place.”

As if on cue, I heard cheerful whistling coming from a back room. A man walked through the doorway into the shop, carrying what looked like an expensive porcelain vase. He had shaggy brown hair, a red conical hat, and an eyepatch over his left eye. Was this who we were looking for?

Jay and Zane appeared behind him, blocking his exit. “Ronin,” Jay greeted stiffly, confirming my suspicions. “Going so soon?”

Ronin seemed startled; clearly, he hadn’t been expecting us. Cole and Kai came up on his other side, and they closed in on him, making him back up toward Jay and Zane. I stood behind Kai and Cole, merely watching the exchange for now. The boys were all glaring at Ronin with disdain. He’d clearly caused them some grief in the past. I’d have to ask them for the full story later.

“If this is about our last encounter, it was only business,” Ronin defended.

Kai growled. “You left us in the mouth of a---”

“So you’re still upset,” Ronin said, cutting Kai off. He brushed past him, walking into the room. “Let me make it up to you.”

He set the vase down on the floor, and before I could process what he was doing, he swiftly leaned down and pushed a hidden button behind the counter. A Vengestone net fell from the ceiling, falling towards us.

“Aha!” Ronin cried in triumph.

Unfortunately for him, the net got tangled up, and ended up hanging uselessly from the ceiling before ever reaching us. The five of us each gave him very unamused looks.

“Uh…” He struggled to find words. “That was a mistake. I-I can explain that.”

“Argh, _nothing_ here is legit,” Cole grumbled, “including you!”

“Yeah,” Jay agreed. “I bet your airship’s not far, either. What do you call it again? Rylo? Ruby?”

“Rex,” Ronin corrected, turning away. “And could you have a little sympathy? Sold her so I could buy this place. As you can see, I'm trying to make an honest living.”

I quietly scoffed. _Honest? Yeah, right_. I was beginning to see why the boys didn’t like this guy.

Kai leaned on the counter, frowning at Ronin. “Honest enough to steal the Scroll of Airjitzu?” he accused.

Ronin made a face. “The Scroll of Who-whatsu?”

“Airjitzu,” Jay corrected. “It can make a Spinjitzu master fly.”

“Yeah. So hand it over, or we can make _you_ fly,” Cole threatened. He snatched an abacus off the counter and tossed it into the wall to emphasize his point.

“Whoa, cool down, fellas,” Ronin exclaimed, holding his hands up in a universal “chill out” gesture. “Even if I had such a thing, it sounds pretty old and important. Definitely not something I'd keep on-site. And definitely too much for you to afford.” He walked out from behind the counter, leading us over to a shelf that was chock-full of various weaponry. “Maybe I can interest you in some unique weapons? I've got Jade Blades, obsidian armor…”

Zane, ever the voice of reason, calmly asked, “Have anything that can vanquish ghosts?”

Ronin hummed curiously. “Ghosts, you say?” Something had changed in his tone---but what, I wasn’t sure.

“Yeah,” Cole said. “They hate water, but we're not looking for water balloons. We need something reliable.”

_Are you sure?_ I silently asked him. _I bet I could surprise a ghost with a water balloon to the face. One of them would be bound to fall for it, right?_

Ronin hummed again, smirking and darting over to another shelf. “What you're looking for is an Aeroblade,” he informed us. He dug said blade out of a nearby box, holding it up for us to see. It looked like a giant shuriken, the blades on the three ends made of a dark stone. “Forged by Deepstone, an aquatic material mined from the bottom of the ocean. Very unique. Even more expensive.”

“Argh!” Kai exclaimed in frustration. “Can't you see he's giving us the runaround?” He stomped up to Ronin, grabbing him by the shoulders. “We want the scroll, Ronin! What do you want for it?”

“Two hundred,” Ronin immediately replied, still smirking.

I quietly raised an eyebrow. _I thought he said that he didn’t have it?_ We couldn’t trust anything that came out of this guy’s mouth, it seemed. _So the scroll_ is _here…_ I curiously glanced around. Where was he hiding it?

“What?!” Jay exclaimed. “Two hundred?! We don’t have that kind of dough!”

“Come on,” Ronin said, pushing Kai away from him. “You guys once had the Golden Weapons. You honestly telling me you've never pinched anything?”

“No!” Kai shouted. “We don’t pinch! And we don’t even have pockets!”  
  


Even though Ronin was clearly a thief and a liar, there was still a possibility that, deep down inside, he had a heart. Maybe, just maybe, he’d be willing to help us out if he knew how dire the situation was. That belief was what compelled me to approach him, putting on my most sincere expression and speaking to him for the first time.

“What if I were to tell you that the fate of Ninjago depends on it?” I asked him, hoping he understood that I was telling him the truth.

Ronin smiled at my words, throwing his arms out to the side. “Well then, little lady, that changes everything!” he exclaimed. For a moment, I thought that he actually cared---but then he made us another outrageous offer. “Four hundred.”

I spluttered, shocked. “ _What_?!” Well, I guess my theory was dead wrong. What was the matter with this guy?

“You can’t just double the price!” Jay protested.

“My shop, my rules,” Ronin stated with a smug grin, sounding very proud of himself.

Seeing that we wouldn’t be getting him to budge on the price, the five of us stepped away for a moment, huddling together to come up with a game plan. I stood between Kai and Jay, putting my arms around them and leaning in close to the group huddle.

“Alright,” Kai began, “so my gut says---”

Cole ignored him, immediately turning to our resident Nindroid. “What do you think, Zane?”

Kai frowned. “What, my opinion doesn’t matter?” he griped, not taking kindly to being interrupted.

“We don't listen to your gut anymore, Kai,” Jay stated. “Zane's the leader. You just get us lost.”

Zane sighed. “Well, I say we give him what he wants,” he suggested. “I sense if we won't, Morro will.”

I looked down, frowning. _He definitely will_ , I agreed. _Either that, or he’ll attack and take it by force…_

Kai groaned in frustration, but eventually relented. “Alright,” he agreed. “But let me negotiate.” He broke away from the group huddle, walking back over to Ronin. The thief was leaning on the counter, watching us bicker with that smug smirk still on his lips. “Two hundred,” Kai bargained.

“Four hundred,” Ronin immediately countered.

“Three hundred!” Kai insisted.

“Four hundred.”

“Three-fifty!”

“Four-fifty.”

“Deal!”

Jay and I both simultaneously facepalmed, groaning in dismay. _Are you kidding me, Kai?_

After that fiasco, the boys and I all trudged out of the pawn shop, back out into the gloomy village of Stiix.

“Nice negotiations, Kai,” Jay grumbled.

Kai huffed. “I didn’t see _you_ do any better,” he argued.

Zane led us onward, back toward the center of the village. “Now to find out how to make some money.”

. . .

Turns out, we didn’t have to look very far to find a way to make money. Zane met a construction foreman at the docks who was more than willing to pay handsomely for some help with a job.

“Oh, glad you five showed up,” he told us, clearly relieved. “Even with a hundred coin a head, I couldn't find anyone willing to go out there and complete the dock.”

I gazed over the calm surface of the dark, murky water surrounding Stiix. What was so dangerous that this man had to offer people a hundred coin to complete the dock? _Maybe they’re being plagued by a giant Fangfish like that other village was_ , I guessed.

Kai eyed the murky ocean water in distaste, shaking his head. “Er, I don’t know,” he whimpered. “We have to work over _water_?”

“Ain't the water you gotta be careful of,” the foreman informed him. “It's Strangle Weed. Grabs a hold of you and doesn't let go.” He smiled at us. “But I could use a good team. How about it?”

Kai still looked pretty uneasy, seemingly trying hard to maintain his nerve. I knew the feeling well. I placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. Zane turned to him, speaking in a low voice.

“Just remind yourself,” Zane said, “after we complete this, we’ll be able to buy the scroll.” Turning back to the foreman, he grinned. “Uh, we’ll do it!”

And so, the five of us got to work building the dock. Zane led the charge, telling each of us what to do and how to do it. He, Jay, Cole, and I were all standing on the wooden poles that would hold up the dock, lying in wait. Kai, happily safe up inside a crane, maneuvered more wooden poles into place over the water.

“Keep your eyes on the prize!” Zane exclaimed, waving his arms to direct Kai’s movements. He was so high up that Zane had to signal to him. “Let’s bring it in slowly.”

Kai lowered the pole down into the water slowly, sticking it in line with the others. Once enough poles were placed, I helped Jay and Cole lay down the wooden planks to go on top of them.

“Come on, guys,” Zane rallied. “One team, one dream!”

“Hey!” Cole and Jay cheered.

As the two of them quickly laid out the planks, I helped Zane with pest control, keeping an eye out for Strangle Weed. I shooed them away with small bursts of light, while Zane tossed his shuriken at any that got too close to Cole and Jay. As that section of the dock was finished, Zane motioned for Kai to stick more wooden poles into the water, starting the process all over again.

“Let’s do it again!” Zane shouted.

“Hey!” Jay and Cole cheered again.

Our team picked up the pace, building and extending the dock at rapid speeds. At this rate, it would be completed in no time. Zane was doing a wonderful job in his role as leader. As we built the dock, he kept everyone’s spirits high, including my own. Everybody’s enthusiastic teamwork was starting to get to me, slowly quelling the emotional turmoil that I was fighting to keep locked away.

_How can they be so high-spirited?_ I shook my head at myself, dismissing the thought. _Better question: why can’t_ I _be so high-spirited?_

“There’s nothing to it!” Zane exclaimed. “Let’s do it!”

“Hey!” Jay and Cole cheered again.

Their enthusiasm evoked a small chuckle from me. Zane happened to notice, and it made him cheer a little louder.

“Hey!” Jay and Cole cheered. I’d nearly cheered with them that time.

“Excellent!” Zane gleefully praised.

I’d just blasted away another piece of Strangle Weed when I heard strange noises coming from Zane. I turned to look at him, only to find him making a strange choking sound, waving his arms around frantically. Cole, Jay, and I all exchanged confused looks. _What’s wrong with him?_

Unfortunately, Kai mistook Zane’s waving arms for an instruction. “You want me to swing it?” he yelled from up in the crane. “Okay, you’re the leader!” He brought the crane around, swinging the wooden pole right at where Zane stood.

“Zane, look out!” I shouted.

My warning came too late, and the wooden pole whacked right into Zane, carrying the Nindroid up into the air. I shared a collective gasp with Jay and Cole, watching as the pole came swinging back, depositing Zane back onto the pole he’d been perched on.

Once he’d reoriented himself, he spoke. “Enif m'I. Gnikrow trats dna pu tilps s'tel.”

Cole, Jay, and I all exchanged confused looks again. Why was Zane talking in gibberish all of a sudden?

“Sdrawkcab s'eludom eciov ym,” Zane garbled, clearly trying to tell us something. His eyes widened. “Deew elgnarts eht ,eloC! Tuo hctaw!”

“What’s...wrong with him?” Cole wondered aloud.

“I don’t know,” Jay admitted. “I think he’s talking backwards.” He turned to Zane. “Slow down! We can’t understand you!”

I sighed, turning away. “I’d better go tell Kai to stop before he causes more destruction.” I hopped across the poles and onto the completed section of the dock, running over to where the crane sat. Craning my neck upward, I cupped my hands over my mouth to amplify my voice. “Kai!” I called, attempting to take control of the situation. “Don’t watch Zane! He’s---”

“Ah!” Cole suddenly screamed from the far end of the dock. “Strangle Weed! It's got me!”

My gaze whipped over to him, seeing that some Strangle Weed had grabbed ahold of his legs and was slowly dragging him off the dock. Jay was struggling to stop it from happening.

“Cole!” I exclaimed.

I started to rush back to help Cole out, but the whirring of the crane grabbed my attention. I looked up and, to my horror, I saw Kai maneuver the pole over to the end of the dock where the others were. Unaware of the turmoil happening below, he dropped the pole above where Jay and Cole were fighting the Strangle Weed.

“Kai, no!” I shouted, a moment too late.

Thankfully, Zane leapt at Jay and Cole, shoving them out of the way before the pole could crush them. However, the pole crashed into the unstable part of the dock, and the whole thing abruptly began to collapse. The three boys scurried back to the village, the dock collapsing right on their tails the entire time. Thankfully, they all made it back safely---but all of the work we’d done had been completely wrecked.

I grimaced, my head falling into my hands at what I’d just watched happen. _I tried to take control of the situation, but no. Everything had to fall to pieces._ I quietly groaned. We’d been _so_ close, and well on our way to buying the scroll we so desperately needed. _Of course it can’t be that easy. Why would it be?_

Kai hopped down from the crane, walking over to gaze down at the destroyed dock alongside the rest of us. He then turned to the foreman, who had watched the whole thing go down, and smiled sheepishly. “So, heh, about getting paid...?”

. . .

“Ah,” Jay grumbled as he fiddled with Zane’s wiring. “His voice mod’s on the fritz. I can fix it, but it’s gonna take time.”

“Ti si ,dab taht ton s'ti?” Zane inquired. I tried slowly processing his words backwards to decipher what he’d said, but gave up when my head started to hurt.

Cole put a hand on the Nindroid’s shoulder. “Sorry, Zane,” he apologized. “You tried to lead, but I guess it just didn’t work out.”

Kai sighed. “No money, no scroll. And it couldn’t have happened at a worse time.”

I was about to speak, but Jay beat me to it. “What are you, a bunch of quitters?!” he yelled. “Sure, we can't understand Zane, but did we _ever_? And Kai's the _last_ person I'd wanna follow.”

“Hey!” Kai protested.

“But now, _I’m_ in charge,” Jay proclaimed, pointing to himself. “We may not have the money to buy the scroll, but I say we don't need it.”

I barely resisted the urge to shake my head as we abruptly changed leaders once more. _Here we go again…_

“And why’s that?” Cole asked.

Jay smirked. “‘Cause we’re gonna steal it!”

At first, I was surprised by his proposition. _Steal the scroll?_ We couldn’t...could we?

“Jay,” Cole admonished, “we’re ninja, not thieves!”

“Yeah, but we're _stealing_ from a _thief_ ,” Jay reasoned. “Haven't you ever heard two wrongs make a right?”

Kai frowned. “Uh, Jay, I don't think that's how it goes…”

“‘Thgir a ekam _t'nod_ sgnorw owt’ s'ti,” Zane commented.

“Shut it, mushmouth!” Jay exclaimed. He then turned to me, as I hadn’t uttered a word yet. “Aurora, surely you think it’s a good idea, right?”

All eyes turned to me, and I grew anxious under the sudden spotlight. I took a moment to think about all of this. Yes, of course stealing was wrong---I knew that well. However...Jay kind of had a point. Ronin had stolen the scroll from its rightful place. It didn’t belong to him anyway. We’d only be taking it from him just to give it back to its rightful owners---after learning Airjitzu, of course.

Besides, we really, _really_ needed this one advantage over Morro. If he ended up with the scroll and we didn’t, then our chances of saving Lloyd were…

“I’m in,” I announced with a nod---much to the surprise of Kai, Jay, and Cole.

Jay beamed at me. “Knew I could count on you!”

Cole tried to protest again. “But Jay---”

“Nope!” Jay interjected, cutting him off. “I'm the leader, and what I say goes. After Ronin locks up tonight, we steal the Scroll of Airjitzu!”

It was a long wait until nighttime. Jay (our new leader, apparently) declared that we pass the time by grabbing a quick bite to eat---but I found myself barely eating anything again, still silently fretting about everything. Even if the awful fishy smell wasn’t lingering in the village’s air, I still wouldn’t have had much of an appetite. Still, I forced myself to eat a few bites, having an ominous feeling that I’d need the energy later.

Eventually, night fell over Stiix. Everyone pulled on their masks and climbed on top of a roof overlooking the vast village.

“Remember, I'm in charge,” Jay reminded us, as if we’d really forgotten in the past couple hours. “We're not _stealing_ the scroll, we're returning it to the library _after_ we learn Airjitzu.”

“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” Cole muttered.

The five of us stood up, and we followed Jay across a string of lights hanging between two houses.

“And we’re ninja!” Jay added. “Let’s keep it quiet.”

Together, the five of us softly cried “Ninja, go!” and sprung into action. I scurried alongside the boys as we silently traveled across the rooftops, sticking to the shadows and letting the dark of night cover us. We were being pretty stealthy so far---until Jay fell into one of the rooftops.

“Whoa!” he cried.

A woman started screaming not long after he’d fallen. “Aah! Get out of here, you blue weirdo!”

Jay quickly climbed back out, and I could almost see his embarrassed blush beneath his mask. “Let's try to be a little _more_ quiet, shall we? Last I remember, we're ninja.”

I facepalmed.

Eventually, and with no more incidents, we made it back to Ronin’s shop. We snuck to the door, finding it locked of course, and so Jay began trying to pick the lock. Having nothing else to use, he tried using his teeth.

“You’re supposed to _pick_ the lock, not try to bite it off,” Kai grumbled, not impressed.

Jay growled at him. “Ugh, if I had my powers, I'd zap it---after I zap you!”

I rolled my eyes, pushing them both away from the lock. “Oh, will you just let me do it?” I extended a finger, pointing at the lock. I shot a tiny beam of light at the side of the lock, breaking it and letting the door creak open. I gestured to the door dramatically.

“Nice work, Aurora,” Jay praised me, creeping into the shop.

Cole sighed as we followed him inside. “Great. Now we’re already on the hook for breaking and entering.”

“Hey, it was either that or break a window,” I defended. “It’s not like I _wanted_ to do it.”

“I don't like sneaking around in the dark any more than you guys do,” Kai stated quietly, “so let's just find the scroll and get out of here.”

“Hey,” Jay interjected, “when you guys were leaders, you never heard me complain. And if you don't like sneaking around, why become a ninja? And leave no stone unturned.”

The five of us fanned out, splitting up so we could search the shop as fast as possible. I paid close attention to everything I saw, checking any possible hiding place for a scroll, no matter how small. I was very determined to find that scroll. All our hopes rested on it.

Despite making multiple comments on how ninja should be quiet, Jay was _still_ talking. “The faster we find the scroll, the faster we can work on the next clue that will lead us to the tomb. Then we can save Lloyd, and it will be all because of me.”

My brows furrowed. _All because of_ you _?_ What did that make the rest of us? Chopped liver?

“I found it!”

My head whipped around to locate Cole, who had made the outburst. At his words, relief began to wash through me. We finally had the Scroll of Airjitzu!

Jay gasped. “You found the scroll?”

“No,” Cole replied, immediately dashing my hopes, “but I found my father’s trophy.” Sure enough, I saw him holding the trademark golden trophy with a Fangblade sticking out of it. “I’m taking it back. He danced hard for this.”

I quietly sighed to myself, returning to my search.

No sooner than I did, Jay cried out in terror, making my head whip around again. My eyes widened when I saw that he was being restrained by an organ, of all things. Its long pipes were wrapped around him, emitting a familiar green haze.

“Holy pipes!” Jay screamed. “The organ’s got me!”

We all immediately rushed over to save him.

“It’s possessed by a ghost!” Cole observed, his tone full of panic. “I-I forgot what we’re supposed to do!”

I wanted to facepalm again. “Water!” I exclaimed, looking around for some. “We need water! Quickly!”

“I got water!” Kai announced, scurrying over to a small vase with a flower in it. He rushed back over with the vase, thrusting the contents up at the possessed organ. But all that did was make the flower inside pop up and start dancing. “Hey, these flowers are fake!”

“We’re on a village built entirely over water,” Jay reminded everyone as we fanned out to search for water to use. “Please, TAKE YOUR TIME!”

Cole soon found a water jug in the corner of the room. “Aha!” He picked it up and immediately tossed it at the possessed organ. Right before it could hit the pipes, however, the ghost possessing it flew away, vanishing into thin air. The pipes released Jay, who fell on the floor with a _thunk_.

“Sdneirf s'orroM fo eno rehtona!” Zane exclaimed as we all gathered around Jay.

“I think he said ‘another one of Morro’s friends,’” Kai translated. I was impressed at how quickly he’d been able to decipher Zane’s backwards gibberish.

“And there's more where that came from!”

The familiar voice made me freeze, and the hairs on the nape of my neck stood on end. _Morro!_

A nearby sliding door abruptly crashed open, and Morro emerged from behind it. Using the Allied Armor, he quickly summoned three more ghosts. They flew up into the air, circling me and the boys. The five of us all clumped together.

“We’re gonna need more water!” Cole exclaimed.

The boys and I spread out again, trying to locate more water to vanquish the ghosts. We tried fighting them off as we did, but nothing worked. All my elemental light could do was blind them for a short moment, but that barely slowed them down.

I found myself next to Kai, and I stuck by him for the moment, not wanting to be alone with Morro and all these ghosts around. As I tried to figure out what we could do, Ronin scurried over to us. He was tied up with ropes; he’d probably been held prisoner by Morro. No wonder he’d been nowhere to be seen when we broke into his shop.

“Cut me free,” he demanded.

Kai deflected an attack from a ghost before making his rebuttal. “Not until you give us the scroll. You’re not the only one who can make a deal.”

“Then at least take an Aeroblade and get rid of a few of these ghosts,” Ronin told him, gesturing with his head over to the drawer where said Aeroblades were kept.

Kai raised a brow. “You said they were hard to come by.”

Ronin shrugged. “I’m a businessman. That was business. Whoa!” The three of us ducked to avoid a ghost rushing over our heads. “ _This_ is personal. Now cut me free.”

Kai plucked a red-tinted Aeroblade out of the drawer. “Not before we check out the merchandise.”

While he was distracted, I noticed one of the ghosts attempting to sneak up behind him. I pointed at him, shouting, “Kai, behind you!”

Kai immediately whirled around, tossing the Aeroblade at the ghost. The blade spun as it sailed through the air. As it passed through the ghost’s spooky green form, it vanished with a cry of anguish. I made a noise that was half-relieved, half-surprised.

_Yes! The Aeroblades work!_ Finally, a reliable way to fight ghosts!

“Huh? They work!” Kai exclaimed, sounding as surprised as I was. Reaching back down into the box, he pulled out a yellow-tinted Aeroblade, handing it to me. He then scooped out the rest of them, tossing them to the others. “Try these!”

Zane threw his Aeroblade up at one of the remaining ghosts, vanquishing it in moments. 

Jay laughed in glee, swiping his Aeroblade at a ghost and making it cower away from him. “Haha! Now who’s scared of who?”

He threw his Aeroblade through the ghost, and it vanished, never to be seen again. As his blade sailed through the air, Ronin leapt up into its path, using the sharp edge to cut himself free. He then attacked Morro, who caught his hands and tried to force him back.

“Where is the scroll?!” Morro demanded.

“You’ll never find it!” Ronin stated.

He leapt up, swiftly kicking Morro in the stomach. Morro crashed into a tall porcelain vase that’d been behind him, shattering it. As the pieces scattered across the floor, a long rolled-up piece of paper tumbled out into the open. There was no mistaking what it was.

“The scroll!” everybody exclaimed in unison.

Morro growled, standing up. “Only one of us shall possess it.”

“Yeah. Me!” 

Ronin let out three short whistles that ascended in pitch. Before anybody could grab the scroll, the entire building began to tremble beneath our feet. I wobbled and struggled to stay on my feet, watching as a ship burst from beneath the floorboards, rising out of the water beneath the building. While we were all distracted, Ronin grabbed the scroll, latching onto his ship as it slowly rocketed into the air.

“Hah!” Jay exclaimed. “I told you his ship wasn’t far!”

Ronin triumphantly smirked down at us. “Sorry to leave you hanging, but since this scroll's so important, I can't just _give_ it away.”

I quickly summoned my light in my hands. I was about to shoot his ship down, but Morro beat me to it, shooting a powerful gust of wind right at it. The ship wobbled in the air so violently that Ronin was thrown off of it, crash-landing somewhere in another part of the village.

Immediately, I scurried out of the destroyed shop, following the direction that I’d seen Ronin falling in. Everyone else had the same idea--including Morro--and it wasn’t long before the six of us had spotted Ronin and were charging at him like an angry mob. Ronin turned tail and ran at the sight of us, still holding the scroll we all desperately sought after. Surprisingly nimble, he scaled the side of a building, quickly making his way towards the docks.

I was so focused on chasing Ronin that I almost didn’t notice Morro doubling back. But I was hyper-aware of his presence, so when his creepy green glow suddenly vanished from the corner of my eye, I noticed. As the boys ran ahead, I skidded to a stop. I looked to see Morro taking a different route, sneaking down an alleyway. It seemed like he was attempting to cut Ronin off.

_Oh no you don’t!_

Shoving my fears to the side for the moment, I gave chase after him. I kept my footfalls as light as possible, hoping that he wouldn’t notice me following him. 

Soon enough, we were at the docks, and as I tailed Morro around a corner, I spotted Ronin running from what looked like some sort of ghostly arrow. He grabbed a fallen signpost, blocking the arrow right before it struck him.

“Unh, that was close,” he muttered.

Morro was suddenly upon Ronin, swiping the scroll from his hands. “But so am I.”

I gasped, not wasting another second and rushing forward. “No!” I cried, shooting a blast of light right at Morro’s back.

By some miracle, I took him by surprise yet again. The blast of elemental light struck him hard, making him tumble over onto his face. As a result, the scroll went flying, and I quickly leapt up to pluck it out of the air. I landed on my feet, staring down at the object in my hand for one glorious, triumphant moment.

The Scroll of Airjitzu.

_I had it_.

Morro groaned, and my gaze shot over to see him picking himself up off the ground. My brain started screaming at me, telling me that I had to get out of here, that I couldn’t let him get the scroll. With a speed I didn’t know I possessed, I immediately whirled around and took off running. 

I heard a loud, encouraging shout from Jay. “Go, Aurora, _go_!”

I didn’t look back, taking off into the village as I willed my legs to move as fast as they possibly could. I used my momentum to launch myself at a sign hanging between buildings, using it to climb up onto the rooftops. Moving fast but reminding myself to be careful, I leapt from roof to roof, trying to put as much distance between me and Morro as possible.

_Run run run_ , my mind frantically shouted over and over again. _Lloyd’s life depends on it!_

I was doing well, for a minute. I soon heard multiple footsteps and a commotion from somewhere behind me. I glanced backward for only a brief moment, and I couldn’t hold back my gasp at what I saw.

Morro was _right behind me_.

...Well, okay, he wasn’t _right_ behind me. But he was chasing me and had grown very, very close to catching up with me. I’d also spotted the boys giving chase behind Morro, but they were a little too far away to help me much.

Startled by how close Morro was, I frantically doubled my efforts, trying to shove down my growing fear as I did. I doubled my speed and I changed up my course, zigging and zagging across the steep, uneven rooftops. I began heading for the edge of Stiix. If I could get to the water, then Morro wouldn’t be able to follow me.

A thought struck me as I ran. I glanced down at the Airjitzu scroll, clutched tightly in my fist. _Just in case Morro gets it…_ Still keeping an eye on where I was going, I grabbed the scroll with both hands and began to unfurl it, trying to get a glimpse at what it contained. I glanced down at it as I ran, trying to make sense of the writings. It was a struggle, however, as my main focus was on running away and making sure I didn’t fall.

I gave it my all, and tried my absolute hardest to get away. But Morro wasn’t about to let that happen.

A sudden strong gust of wind came out of nowhere, and I couldn’t hold back a shriek of surprise as my feet left the ground. It threw me airborne for only a short moment, but it felt like an eternity before I hit the ground again. I crashed onto the sloping side of a rooftop, and the impact hit me so hard that the scroll was knocked from my hands. I rapidly slid off the steep edge of the roof, and I only just managed to grab the side of it to stop myself from plummeting down the long fall below me.

I dangled from the roof by one hand, taking a moment to secure my grip and calm my racing heart. I then frantically searched for the scroll, spotting it wedged between two shingles on the roof a few feet away from where I dangled. Chest heaving as I tried to catch my breath, I swung my other arm up, reaching up across the roof and desperately trying to grab the scroll that was just beyond my reach.

The next moment, Morro appeared, landing right next to the scroll. I gasped again, staring up at him with wide eyes like a deer caught in headlights.

_Crap crap crap---_

“Hello again, Aurora,” Morro greeted me. I could practically hear his smile in his voice. He scooped the scroll off the surface of the roof, making my stomach drop. “Have you been thinking about what I said?”

“Yeah, thought about it,” I retorted in a hostile tone that sounded a lot braver than I felt at the moment. “And big surprise: my answer is still NO!”

Morro sighed, sounding disappointed as he shook his head. “What a shame. But, can’t say I wasn’t expecting such a response.” He knelt down, lifting his mask for a moment so I could see his smile. “You’ll come to your senses eventually. I can be patient.”

His sinister yet somehow pleasant smirk made a shiver run down my spine, and I was once again glad for the mask hiding most of my expression.

Morro stood back up, tugging his mask back over his face. “Sorry, my lady. But only one of us shall possess this scroll.”

He fled, and I could do absolutely nothing to stop him.

“No!” I cried, struggling to pull myself up onto the roof. I was having a difficult time. Not only was I still trying to catch my breath, but the roof was so steep that it was taking great strength for me to attempt to pull myself up onto it. Despite all this, I desperately persisted, my entire thought process filled with nothing but the need to catch Morro and take the scroll back before he got away.

Luckily, my saving grace came in the form of Kai. A few moments after Morro had left, he landed on the rooftop I was precariously dangling off of. “Hang on, sis!” he exclaimed, carefully leaning down from the peak of the roof so he could grab my hand. “I’ve gotcha!”

Relief washed through me as I was slowly pulled to safety, but that relief only lasted for a brief second. “Where are the others?” I frantically asked.

“They, uh… They fell behind,” Kai replied, sounding embarrassed.

As soon as I was on the peak of the roof next to Kai, I immediately looked for Morro. I spotted him making his way toward that dock we’d tried to complete earlier. He was getting close to it, too. A cold wave of dread washed over me, spurring me into action once more.

“We _have_ to catch him!” I exclaimed, quickly leaping to another roof and breaking out into a sprint again. “Come on!”

“Right behind ya!” Kai assured me.

I chased Morro, with Kai right on my tail. I still hadn’t fully caught my breath from all the running I’d already done, but I ignored my fatigue, pushing myself and kicking my legs into overdrive. I didn’t let Morro out of my sight for a single moment, more determined than ever to catch up with him and take the scroll back. 

Morro hopped off one last building, landing on the dock. He glanced behind him to see me and Kai appear on the roof he’d just left, and turned around to keep running.

“Ah, great,” Kai grumbled. “More water.”

Not sharing Kai’s hate for water, I immediately leapt off the roof and pursued Morro onto the unfinished dock. When Morro ran out of dock to run on, he jumped onto one of the many poles sticking up out of the water, leading further out into the sea. As he leapt from pole to pole, I wasted no time in following him, my balance perfect in the midst of my intense determination.

_I have to catch him. I have to catch him. I have to catch him._

Morro spared a moment to stop and turn around, waving the scroll at me mockingly. I softly growled, anger and frustration rising within me as I tried to pick up the pace. I was running out of energy; at this point, I was running on pure adrenaline.

As the poles went from side by side to being single file, we came upon a huge gap between two of them, one that would be too far to jump normally. This wasn’t a problem for Morro, who leapt into the air and used a small burst of wind to propel himself to the other side. I growled in frustration again, wracking my brain for any way I could get myself across to him.

Meanwhile, Kai had arrived behind me. I saw him slip on the pole, struggling to remain atop it as a few strands of Strangle Weed crept up toward him.

Morro laughed at the sight, looking up from the Scroll of Airjitzu after a long moment of reading it. “What’s the matter?” he taunted Kai, securing the scroll on his back. “Can’t swim?”

I watched as he dropped into a stance, making a series of swift, precise movements that my brain could hardly keep up with. The next moment, a transparent green orb formed around him, and a vortex formed beneath his feet. It carried him up into the air, and I watched with wide eyes.

Airjitzu.

_That’s it!_ To get across the water, I could try using Airjitzu. The problem was, I had only gotten a brief look at the scroll before Morro had taken it from me. I wasn’t even sure if I’d read the whole thing. Would it be enough?

...It would have to be.

Steeling my nerves and concentrating, I readied myself, leapt over to the last pole before the gap, and used my remaining strength to launch myself into the air. As I did, I recalled what little I’d read off the scroll, and spun around in midair as I went airborne.

And then…

And then…

Some form of energy spiraled around me, like I was doing Spinjitzu. But this was different. A light yellow vortex appeared beneath me, propelling me upward into the air as a transparent orb formed around me. I let out a gasp of delighted surprise, almost laughing in glee as I floated up into the air.

Airjitzu! I was actually doing Airjitzu!

But it only lasted for one long, amazing moment. I was propelled only a few feet into the air before the Airjitzu began to falter. As it began to fade, I desperately tried to hold it steady, to maintain the vortex I’d created. I willed my desperation and determination to be enough to succeed. But the problem was that I had no clue how to keep my Airjitzu going.

And so, when the vortex disappeared, I could do nothing but fall.

“Aaah!” I cried out as I plummeted down to the ocean below me, crashing into the water’s surface with a despondent splash. Holding my breath (and trying to repress all my bad memories of crash-landing in water), I quickly swam back up to the surface. I emerged from the waves, catching my breath. Physically, I was okay---but I suddenly grew very, very distressed.

Still up in the air, Morro stopped doing Airjitzu and summoned his terrifying power dragon. It released a shrill, bone-chilling roar into the night, only adding to my distress.

“A valiant effort, Yellow Ninja!” Morro told me. “But looks like the better ninja won!”

For a long moment, I was frozen, completely unnerved and watching in horror as Morro flew away on his dragon, heading back toward Stiix to pick up his remaining ghost buddy. I then snapped out of it for a moment, as one last, desperate idea struck me.

“W-Wait!” I exclaimed, pulling my hands out of the water and using my legs to keep treading above it. “I-I can still catch him!” I clenched my eyes shut and tightened my hands into fists, trying to concentrate enough to summon my power dragon. It was the only way I’d be able to catch Morro now. My dismay, fear, and distress were all rising considerably and threatening to boil over, but I tried to push those emotions down, tried to calm myself enough so that my dragon could appear. “Come on, dragon!” I cried, my tone filled with desperation. “ _Please_! Please work!”

The audible wingbeats of Morro’s dragon grew further and further away. I tried my absolute hardest, trying to find the strength within me to ignore my fears and shaky emotions in order to summon my power dragon. But no matter how much I struggled, I still could not get my dragon to appear.

I was still too afraid.

Upon giving up, I let out a loud groan of frustration. “It’s no use!”

Kai, who was still perched precariously on a wooden pole and looking too scared to move, furrowed his brow. “You still can’t summon your power dragon?” he asked me, sounding perplexed.

I shook my head, looking down at my hands, which had begun to shake. “N-No…”

“But you have your elemental power,” Kai reasoned, stomping on a leaf of Strangle Weed that had crept too close. “You should be able to summon your dragon.”

“I _can’t_ ,” I exclaimed, my voice cracking. “I just can’t!”

“Well, why not?!”

“BECAUSE I’M TERRIFIED!!”

The confession came out in a loud wail as I was shoved over my emotional edge. I couldn’t deflect the question this time, not when I was all too aware of the reason behind my failure. My eyes pricked with tears--tears that had been bottled up for days now, and had been waiting too long to be shed--and I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to hold them back this time. In the midst of my distress, defeat, and slight hopelessness, what I mainly felt in that moment was pure frustration.

Why was I letting all this upset me so much? Why was I letting this get to me so badly? I’d been able to keep my cool in dire, hopeless situations many times before. Why couldn’t I just suck it up and focus on what was really important, like everyone else was?

I think a part of me already knew.

Lloyd and I… The moment we met, we’d formed a special bond that would turn out to stand the test of time. And ever since then, we hadn’t spent more than a day apart from one another. As I’d helped him, he’d been helping me, too. He had helped me discover where I truly belonged. He had helped me find the family that I’d always wanted. No---he’d _become_ the family I’d always wanted. Him, and all the other people in my life.

Yes, I knew that I still had everyone else by my side. The four boys who had become my brothers. Nya. Sensei Wu. Misako.

But Lloyd, he…he... 

He was my best friend. My boyfriend. My partner in crime. The boy I adored. The love of my life. My everything.

And now, when I was suddenly faced with a real possibility of losing him, of having to live life without him, no matter how small…

That absolutely _petrified_ me.

Eventually, I regained enough control over myself to slowly paddle through the water toward the nearest wooden pole. Getting to solid ground would be wise, especially in treacherous waters like these. Kai said nothing, and neither did I, feeling almost numb as I swam up to the pole in front of the one he was perched on. I grasped it with my arms, attempting to hoist myself up onto it, but I had little success. I didn’t really have enough upper body strength left for it, and even if I did, my legs felt like lead. I doubt I could climb my way up to safety.

To make matters worse, the Strangle Weed decided to plague me and try and drag me under. It was easy to blast them away with my elemental light, but I was stuck in the water. And since Kai had no love for water, I’d probably get no help from him.

That was when a ship descended upon us, its rocket boosters glowing blue in the dark night. I recognized it from earlier: it was Ronin’s ship, Rex. And guess who was standing on board?

“Looks like you two could use a lift,” Ronin greeted, smiling down at us.

He kicked down a ladder, one that was long enough for both be and Kai to grab onto. Just as Kai reached for it, however, Ronin pulled it out of reach.

“Nuh uh uh,” he admonished, still smirking in his annoying way. “Nothing in life is free.”

I rolled my eyes, turning away from the ladder and back to the pole. _Surely I can save myself, right? I’ve failed at everything else today, but_ surely _I’m at least capable of succeeding at_ that _…_

“You slimy, money-grubbing thief!” Kai insulted. “I don’t have any money! I don’t even have pockets!”

“Everyone’s got something,” Ronin replied. “‘Cause of you, my shop’s destroyed.”

Kai growled. “ _We_ didn’t destroy it. _You_ did!”

Ronin frowned. “Okay. Your loss,” he stated, turning away. He turned Rex around, and started to fly away.

Kai glanced down at me, seeing how much I was struggling to climb to safety. He then looked back to where Rex was retreating. “W-Wait!” Kai shouted as the Strangle Weed wrapped around him. “There is something.”

Ronin’s ship immediately halted, slowly backing up until it was above us again. Ronin walked back out from the cockpit, smiling again.

“Ha!” he chuckled. “Like I said, everyone’s got something.”

I barely listened as Kai struck a deal with Ronin, too overwhelmed with the storm of thoughts and emotions welling up within me, no matter how much I tried to stuff them back down. From what I’d seen today, I already knew how kind of awful Kai was at making business deals with the likes of criminals like Ronin, so it wasn’t much of a surprise to me when Kai ended up offering him not only his shares of the tea farm, but mine, Zane’s, Cole’s, _and_ Jay’s. He’d tried to offer only his own shares, but Ronin wasn’t having it. If I were feeling more like myself, I probably would’ve offered my input and argued with Ronin for a better deal.

But I refrained from saying anything, for if I did, I feared that I’d start crying.

Once Ronin was satisfied, he lowered the ladder again. Kai didn’t hesitate to grab onto it and climb to safety, and after a moment, I reluctantly grabbed the ladder, too. I climbed up into Ronin’s ship, still not uttering a word, even as Ronin retreated to the cockpit to fly his ship back to Stiix. I kept my mask on for the moment, to try and hide any tears that had escaped my watery eyes. I stared down at the floor, and I could feel Kai’s gaze on me, clearly concerned for my well-being.

Kai, probably sensing that I was on the verge of breaking down, placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. “Hey,” he gently pried, tugging off his mask. “Aurora, are you… Are you alright?”

I felt a sense of deja vu, from when Kai had comforted me after my terrible nightmare a while ago. I’d refused to cry then, had refused to let my emotions free and share my inner turmoil. Ever since Lloyd had gotten possessed, the rest of my family had been so obviously concerned for me. If they weren’t verbally wondering if I was alright, they were asking the question with their worried gazes. And all the while, I’d tried my best to conceal my distress and depression from them, not wanting them to spend time worrying about me when all we should be focusing on was saving Lloyd and stopping Morro. I’d tried to be strong, for Lloyd and for everybody else.

But right now, I just didn’t have the strength to be strong anymore.

I slowly turned to face Kai, still staring at the floor. I pulled my damp mask off my head, exposing my equally damp cheeks to the cool night air. A few tears had managed to leak from my eyes, and despite the seawater drying on my face, I knew that Kai must be able to see them. “I’m…” Slowly, I lifted my head to meet his eyes, and I think it was the sight of his understanding gaze that did me in. “No, Kai. No, I’m not.”

He was there to catch me as I slumped over, the last of my willpower vanishing as I finally broke down. I buried my face into the fabric of his ninja gi as I started bawling my eyes out, finally allowing the emotional shock and breakdown that I had held back for days to run free. It had only grown worse the longer I’d kept it bottled up, but I hadn’t realized that until I was finally letting it all out. All the while, Kai said nothing, merely wrapping his arms around me and hugging me to him, grounding me as I broke down in his embrace.

I hated this. I hated how I was taking the time to cry when I should be figuring out how to stop Morro. I hated how weak and powerless I felt as I cried. I hated how the tears just kept coming and coming, and I couldn’t stop them. I hated how guilty I felt for making Kai have to deal with my breakdown, especially when I knew how much all of this was getting to him as well. I just hated _crying_ , and I felt stupid for doing it. 

Not only was Lloyd counting on me, but the rest of the team was, too. As the Yellow Ninja, a ninja of prophecy, I knew well what intense pressure felt like, as if everything rested on my shoulders (which it had, more than once). And now, as the only ninja at the moment with her elemental power, I felt like everybody was depending on me more than ever. I shouldn’t be wasting time feeling sorry for myself, not when I should be leading the charge to save Lloyd.

But, at the same time...I knew this was something that needed to happen.

And so, I let it.

After what felt like an eternity, I finally, _finally_ pulled myself together enough to stop crying. When I gathered my bearings again, it was then that I felt embarrassment on top of the guilt, suddenly very shy about the fact that I’d been reduced to a crying, sobbing, sniffling mess in front of Kai.

Still hiding my face in the (now damp) fabric of Kai’s gi, I quickly tried to find my voice again, wanting to apologize before he decided to say something first. “S-Sorry,” I eventually squeaked out, hating how strangled my voice sounded. In a moment of wry humor, I snorted, my words filled with slight scorn for myself. “Sorry, Kai. I-I know how much you hate water…”

I felt rather than saw Kai shake his head at my comment. “Aurora, look at me.”

A small amount of my willpower returned, just enough to get me to raise my head and look Kai in the face. He was frowning at me, giving me this incredulous look of understanding and sympathy.

“Don’t you remember what I said yesterday?” he asked me. “ _Don’t_ apologize. You have _nothing_ to be sorry for. Especially crying. Not when it’s a perfectly natural response to everything you’ve been through.”

He was right. I knew he was right. This was how most people would react to such a terrible reality. It was how most would react if the one they loved had been taken from then, and remained just out of their reach no matter what they tried. I just needed to accept that.

I nodded at Kai, gently removing myself from his embrace. Even though I felt embarrassed for breaking down in front of him, I also felt quite grateful that he’d been there to comfort me, to tell me that it was okay to cry.

That was when I spotted movement over his shoulder. I glanced behind him to see Ronin watching us from the ship’s cockpit. He was frowning deeply, looking sympathetic and even a little guilty.

_Oh great, was he… Did he hear all of that?_ In all honesty, in my fit of crying, I’d momentarily forgotten he was here. My cheeks flushed in embarrassment at the thought of him having to listen to my pathetic sobbing.

Ronin made a face, as if mentally debating with himself on whether or not to say something. Then, he decided to speak. “Clearly, uh… Clearly this whole ordeal has hit you guys a lot harder than I thought.”

Kai turned around to face him, crossing his arms. “Yeah? What’s it to you?”

“Hey, hear me out,” Ronin said. “You guys might’ve lost the scroll, but in times like this, there’s always a second chance for redemption.”

Even though my strangled post-crying voice was very cringey at the moment, the hope of what he said urged me to press him. “What do you mean ‘a second chance?’”

He smiled. “What I mean is...there may be another way for you to learn Airjitzu.”

And so, in the last minute of our flight, he told us all about that other way we could learn Airjitzu. He told us about a dead sensei, and an old haunted temple that could possibly hold the secrets to the technique we sought to learn. As he explained it, I could feel my hope slowly being restored.

In that moment, despite my emotional breakdown, I took solace in the fact that the fight wasn’t over yet. Not by a longshot.

In no time at all, Ronin had brought us back to solid ground again. Kai spotted where the others were gathered, and directed Ronin over to them. Sitting at a picnic table, looking just as defeated as I felt, they waved at us, and Kai waved back. As soon as Ronin brought his ship low enough, Kai and I hopped out and onto the solid ground of Stiix.

“Thanks for the pick-me-up,” Kai quipped.

Ronin addressed him from inside the cockpit. “Remember what I said about second chances,” he stated. “And I’m gonna hold you to that deal.” His gaze then went to me, and he gave me an encouraging nod that actually kind of...reassured me. “So long, and I hope you get your friend back.”

I responded with a grateful nod of my own. After that, Ronin steered Rex away from the side of the docks, and flew off into the night sky. Kai turned and scurried over to where the other boys were sitting, and I followed at a slower pace, sparing a few moments to take a deep breath and wipe any stray tear stains from my face.

_I hope they don’t notice that I’ve been crying_ , I thought.

“Second chances?” Cole echoed as we approached, having heard Ronin’s parting words to us. “What did he mean by that?”

“We may have lost out on the scroll, but he thinks there may be another way to learn Airjitzu,” Kai explained.

The others all responded simultaneously, clearly excited at the news.

“We’re still gonna fly?”

“Really?! Another way?!”

“Swen taerg si siht.”

But then, Cole’s smile disappeared, and he stood up. “Whoa, whoa, whoa,” he interjected, giving Kai an accusatory look. “Wait a sec. Ronin makes deals in _his_ favor, and you're a _horrible_ negotiator.”

So I wasn’t the only one who thought so.

“Kai?” Jay said, his suspicion clear in his tone. “What did you give him?”

I sighed in dismay, my head falling into my hand. _They are NOT gonna like this…_

Kai turned away from everyone. “I...sort of gave him...my shares of the tea farm...” After a moment, he quickly dropped the bomb. “Along with all of yours.”

As you probably already guessed, the others didn’t react so well.

“YOU WHAT?!” Jay bellowed, so loudly that it made me cringe.

“Wu’s gonna flip!” Cole exclaimed.

“Swen elbirroh s'taht!” Zane babbled.

I suddenly felt the need to defend Kai---especially after he’d been so willing to endure my emotional instability. Twice, now. “Okay, guys, calm down,” I gently urged, stepping between them and Kai. “Yes, I know, he made a terrible deal. But he did what he had to do.”

Kai placed his hand on my shoulder and stood next to me, confidently adding, “And for Lloyd, I’d do it again.”

Cole sighed. “You’re right,” he admitted. “But I have to ask: if Morro has the only scroll, just how are we gonna learn Airjitzu?”

Kai exchanged a look with me. “Let’s just say, it’s not gonna be easy,” he stated. “We have a ghost of a chance.”


	4. Episode 51: The Temple on Haunted Hill

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's another way to learn Airjitzu? Count me in!
> 
> Wait...we have to spend the night in a haunted temple? ...Well, nothing worth doing is ever easy, I guess.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woot! Chapter 4! Let's go! :D
> 
> Little side note: I'll try my best to finish the next chapter by next Wednesday, but...it might not happen? Depends on if I can finish my mountain of schoolwork first. Ooof. But, the main point is, if the next update shows up a little late, don't panic! I'll post it as soon as I finish it.
> 
> Anyway, please enjoy the chapter! ...Or try to, at least. You know, considering what happens at the end of this episode... (I'M SO SORRY, COLE!) But that aside, I think you all will like this one. There's a small reference to a scene from a Teen Titans episode---kudos to you if you recognize it!  
> \------------------------------------

"So, wait, Aurora---you actually did Airjitzu?”

I dismissively shrugged at Cole’s question. “Eh...sort of,” I meekly admitted, allowing my disappointment to creep into my tone. “I was only able to do it for a moment until it stopped working. I wasn't able to read the entire scroll beforehand. Only bits and pieces of it.”

Kai and I had been recounting to the others what had happened in the race for the Scroll of Airjitzu last night, after the three of them had fallen behind---excluding the part about me bawling my eyes out, of course. I was grateful to Kai for keeping that embarrassing breakdown between us.

“Well, for bits and pieces, I say it’s still impressive you were able to do it at all,” Cole praised.

I replied with a small smile of gratitude.

“What’s it like? Airjitzu?” Jay eagerly asked me, grinning in excitement. “Is it as awesome as we thought?”

“In that one brief moment I was actually doing it, yeah,” I confirmed, nearly smiling again from his contagious excitement. “But like I said, I didn’t get the full experience before…you know.” I sighed.

I was about to mentally beat myself up again for losing the Scroll of Airjitzu to Morro (I knew that it wasn’t my fault, but my guilt kept telling me otherwise), but Kai was onto me.

“Hey, don’t worry about it,” he told me, placing a reassuring hand on my shoulder. “We’re still gonna learn Airjitzu. Just...a different way than we originally planned.”

I nodded, knowing that he was right. This wasn’t over yet. “Yeah,” I stated, turning my gaze forward. “Which means that we should probably listen to what our tour guide has to say…”

The boys and I were all gathered at the back of a large group of tourists. Our group had been led up the spooky “Haunted Hill” to where the ancient Yang’s Haunted Temple resided. Our tour guide was none other than Patty Keys, the woman who had tried her hardest to sell us that dinky apartment back in Ninjago City.

That felt like a lifetime ago.

“Welcome to Yang's Haunted Temple,” she announced, a bit too enthusiastically for my taste, “the historical landmark and former home of Sensei Yang, the notorious sensei without a pupil, infamous for creating the lost martial art of Airjitzu.” As she spoke, the other tourists all pulled out their cell phones and began snapping countless pictures of the temple and its surroundings. “Unfortunately, we can't take our tour groups inside, for rumors say anyone trapped inside its walls at sunrise will be turned into a ghost permanently. But, if you listen closely, maybe we'll be able to hear the ghost of Sensei Yang himself looking for his lost pupils.”

“I HOPE IT’S NOT A RUMOR, FOR IT’S OUR ONLY HOPE!”

All eyes turned to stare back at Zane, who had shouted the words at the very top of his lungs. I cringed, feeling sorry for my Nindroid brother. Jay had been able to fix his voice so that he wasn’t speaking backwards anymore, but now for some reason he could only speak (or, more accurately, yell) at his top volume.

“Ah, sorry about my loud friend,” Cole apologized, smiling sheepishly. “He’s a little hard of hearing.”

Patty scowled, clearly not appreciating the loud interruption. “Known for his un--” she made a point of clearing her throat, “--usual teaching methods…”

As she continued speaking and leading us over to the temple, the five of us quietly conversed in the back of the tour group.

“I thought you said you fixed him?” Kai asked Jay.

“At least he’s no longer talking backwards,” Jay optimistically pointed out. “I guess my tinkering got his volume level stuck.” He chuckled in embarrassment.

“AT LEAST YOU CAN UNDERSTAND ME NOW!” Zane helpfully reminded us.

Patty was still very unamused as she continued her speech. “...dating back-- _ahem_ \--to the Edo Period…”

Cole frowned. “Well, from now on, only speak if you have something _really_ important to say,” he suggested.

Kai raised a brow at him. “Who put _you_ in charge?”

“I did,” Cole told him matter-of-factly. I discreetly shook my head. “After you guys mucked it up, it's my turn to be in charge. And, like me, I like my plans simple. We sneak in, learn Airjitzu from the ghost of Sensei Yang, then get out before sunup.”

“Since Morro already knows Airjitzu, we just have to hope he hasn't figured out the next clue,” Kai said.

I was trying _very_ hard not to dwell on how far ahead of us Morro was getting with the next clue while we were still stuck on the first one. As I very well knew, worrying over things like that would only distract me from the task at hand. I knew I had to focus on properly learning Airjitzu. The sooner the boys and I learned it, the sooner we could get back to pursuing Morro.

And the sooner we could save Lloyd.

Patty was smiling now, leading the tour group away from the temple and back toward where the tour bus was waiting. “Well, the sun is setting, which means we should head back to the bus.” Then she chuckled, dramatically adding, “Wouldn't want anyone to turn into a ghost!”

. . .

As you can probably guess, the boys and I didn’t head back with the tour group. Instead, we all hid and waited until nightfall, since the ghost of Sensei Yang would probably only appear at nighttime. The five of us hid near his spooky stone statue outside the temple, patiently waiting until the full moon was rising in the sky and the owls were hooting their greetings in the quiet night.

We emerged from our hiding place, sneaking over to Yang’s temple in silence. The boarded-up, tall structure was even more ominous in the dark of the night, but we didn’t let that deter us from our mission.

Cole and Jay immediately went up to a boarded window, trying to pry the wooden boards off of it so we could climb inside. Meanwhile, I followed Zane and Kai over to the double doors, almost snickering as Zane was able to easily open them. I stepped inside, right behind Kai.

“Oh,” I heard Cole mutter, seeing how easily the doors opened. “Uh, okay.”

He and Jay were quick to join us inside the temple’s entrance hall. Sticking close to each other, the five of us ventured onward into Yang’s haunted temple.

We failed to notice the door creaking shut behind us, the locks clicking shut all by themselves.

It was safe to say that Yang’s temple was a _lot_ creepier on the inside. I was keeping a sharp eye out for ghosts, my gaze darting to every shadow that moved or seemed strange. Something felt off about this place, and it unsettled me, making me a little more jumpy than normal. This was definitely a place you did _not_ want to be in any longer than you had to.

_You’re doing this for Lloyd_ , I thought, urging myself to be brave. _You’re doing this for Lloyd…_

Thanks to the huge crying fit I’d had yesterday, I was feeling better than before. Well, at least my storm of emotions had finally calmed down somewhat and I didn’t have to struggle with bottling them all up anymore. I still didn’t necessarily feel like myself, but I felt like I could focus more on the task at hand, rather than spend all my time moping and wishing that Lloyd was with me. Which was good. After all, sitting around feeling sorry for myself wouldn’t help anybody.

A faint green glow appeared ahead of us, and for a moment, I thought it was a ghost. The light was creeping through the cracks in a set of double doors, and so the five of us headed toward it. Jay threw open the doors and we walked into the room, tugging our masks off to better observe our surroundings. 

The room seemed to be a library or study of some sort. Tall bookcases lined the walls, and a massive oak desk sat off to the side. A fireplace sat at the other end of the room, and an eerie green fire crackled inside it---the source of the green glow.

“Argh!”

I whipped around at Cole’s outburst, ready to fight off an enemy, but I found that he was only being bothered by a spider. I saw Kai smiling in amusement, walking over to calmly bat the spider out of Cole’s face.

“Relax,” Kai urged. “If this place is truly haunted, we just need to wait until he shows himself.”

I joined him at Cole’s side, trying to help reassure our brother. “This place makes me jumpy, too, Cole,” I sympathized. “But we’ll be okay.”

Cole let out a worried whine. “Ah, he should’ve been here by now,” he stated. “You heard the tour guide! If we're not out by sunup, we'll be ghosts!”

Kai snorted. “You didn’t buy into that malarkey, did you?”

As the others were busy talking amongst themselves, I spotted Zane stepping off to the side, a twinkle of mischief in his eyes. Curious, I watched him pull out his falcon, sneaking over to the old grandfather clock in the corner. He opened it, placing the falcon inside before closing it and discreetly rejoining the group. When he saw me watching him, he winked conspiratorially.

_What is he up to?_ I wondered, raising a curious brow in his direction.

“Hey, I don't wanna be a ghost! Who wants to be a ghost?” Cole latched onto my arm, clearly still needing reassurance. “And _why_ didn't anyone warn us this place would get so _creepy_ after dark?”

“Eh, remind me again why we agreed to put the guy afraid of ghosts in charge?” Jay wondered aloud, clearly not impressed.

I sighed, shaking my head. “We never actually agreed on it,” I mumbled, mostly to myself. Maybe that was the problem with all the “leaders” we’d tried so far: every time, nobody had unanimously agreed on someone to be the leader. They’d just started leading the team on their own authority.

“LISTEN TO THIS!” Zane shouted, walking over to us with an open book he’d retrieved from a bookshelf.

“Argh!” Jay exclaimed, cringing as Zane practically yelled in his ear. “Allow me.” He took the book from Zane, clearing his throat before reading the page to us aloud. “Whoa! It says here though many believed Sensei Yang's unusually strict teachings drove his pupils away, others admit to never seeing any of them leave the temple grounds, suggesting a more sinister plot. Hah! How awesome is that?”

I frowned, shaking my head. “It’s… It’s not.”

“Not awesome,” Cole agreed, looking even more nervous than before. “Not even a little.”

“Don’t believe everything you read,” Kai advised.

Jay continued reading the passage aloud. “Yang was hard on his pupils for a reason, for in his words: ‘as iron sharpens iron, sensei sharpens student.’”

Kai hummed in thought. “I wonder what he means by that.”

Suddenly, the grandfather clock started _moving_ , chiming loudly and producing an unsettling groaning noise.

“I-It’s _him_!” Cole exclaimed, backing away from the clock and latching onto my arm again. “He’s in the clock!”

At first, I was a little freaked out---but then I remembered that Zane had put his falcon inside the clock earlier. I held back a smirk. _He’s pulling a prank on Cole_. I was pleasantly surprised; I couldn’t really recall a time when Zane had actually played a prank on someone.

“You’re the leader,” Jay reminded Cole, pushing him forward. “Check it out.”

Cole, very reluctantly letting my arm go, walked up to the moving clock. Slowly, he grabbed the knob on the door, and wrenched it open. Zane’s falcon came flying out, squawking loudly as Cole screamed his head off. The mechanical bird quieted down, flying over to land on Zane’s outstretched arm. With a triumphant grin, Zane pressed a button on the falcon’s control panel, playing the spooky groaning sound we’d all heard.

Jay, Zane, and Kai all burst out laughing as Cole calmed down. I had to spare a short giggle at Zane’s successful practical joke. Sure, it had been a little cruel, but I was always a sucker for a good prank. It had been a while since I’d played a prank on anybody. Pranks always cheered me up.

I usually played pranks with Lloyd…

I shook my head. _Stop_. I mentally scolded myself. _Don’t make yourself all sad again._

“A _prank_?” Cole exclaimed, his fear replaced with annoyance. “Really?”

Kai chuckled. “Heh. We were just trying to help you relax.”

“Yeah, heh,” Jay added. “You should have heard yourself scream!”

Zane smirked, pressing a button on the falcon again. This time, a recording of Cole screaming at the top of his lungs played through its mouth, making Zane, Jay, and Kai laugh themselves silly all over again. I tried to hold in my laughter this time--for the sake of Cole’s pride--but it was very difficult.

The laughter stopped when something hit the roof with a loud _thud_. I gasped, my gaze shooting upward with everyone else’s.

_What the heck was that?_

Cole sighed. “ _Another_ prank?” He didn’t sound the least bit concerned. “Real funny.” He walked over to the doors, opening one of them so he could leave. “Didn’t anyone teach you to quit while you’re ahead?”

Kai, Jay, Zane, and I all exchanged very worried looks.

“Uh...was that you?” Kai asked Jay.

“Not me,” Jay whimpered.

“ME EITHER!” Zane exclaimed.

The three of them slowly turned to me. I raised my hands to display my innocence.

“Hey, I may have a history of pranking,” I admitted, “but this is definitely not me.”

The four of us silently came to the same conclusion. The next moment, we were all scurrying out of the room after the wayward earth ninja.

“COLE, WAIT!”

We sprinted down the hallway, trying to catch up with Cole before he got himself into trouble. The boys all tried to reason with him at the same time, talking over each other.

“I swear, Cole, we didn’t do that!” Kai shouted.

“Let’s go back!” Jay urged.

“IT WASN’T US!” Zane bellowed.

Cole stopped in front of a different set of double doors, which were rattling and shaking violently. He turned to us, amused. “Okay, I have to admit, this is pretty good. How'd you guys get the handles to move all by itself? Is Nya behind there?” He turned and reached for the door handles.

“Cole, no!” I yelled.

“Don’t open that door!” Jay pleaded.

We were running pretty fast, but not fast enough. The boys screamed as Cole turned the door knobs, opening the tall doors and walking into the room just as we caught up with him.

And...nothing happened.

The room was dark, quiet, and mostly empty. There wasn’t a ghost to be found. The only thing in the room was something akin to a shrine. It was a table with candles and incense sitting on it, and a picture of Sensei Yang hung on the wall above it. The candles were burning with the same spooky, unnatural green flame that had been in the fireplace in the last room, and I involuntarily shivered at the sight of it.

“Well,” Kai uttered after a moment, “that was anticlimactic.”

Sticking close together, the five of us ventured into the dark room. I glanced in all directions, expecting a ghost to pop out at any moment.

“Sensei Yang's dojo,” Kai stated. “This is where he must've trained his pupils.”

“Or...got _rid_ of them,” Jay added, shivering in fear.

I gulped. “Oh boy…”

“Knock it off, guys,” Cole urged, still not sounding very concerned. “If that wasn't you behind the rattling door, who was it?”

Jay, Kai, and Zane all provided him with the same answer. “The ghost of Sensei Yang!”

“ _As iron sharpens iron, sensei sharpens student._ ”

The disembodied voice came out of nowhere, nearly startling me out of my skin. I couldn’t see where it was coming from, but it was very obvious who the unfamiliar voice belonged to.

“IT’S THE GHOST OF SENSEI YANG!” we all shouted in unison.

“Uh, guys,” Jay whimpered, “what does he mean by ‘sharpen?’”

As the five of us began to panic, a few swords--which had been hanging on the wall behind the shrine--began moving, controlled by some unseen force.

“Let’s not hang around to find out!” Cole exclaimed.

The swords flew off of their places on the wall, pointing right at us as we backed away.

“Let’s get out of here!” Kai shouted.

None of us needed to be told twice. We all turned and scurried out of the room, running as fast as we possibly could to get away from the floating swords of doom. They chased us out of the dojo, but the boys closed the doors, quickly enough so that the swords were trapped inside. Even with those taken care of, we still kept running for our lives.

As we sprinted down the hallways, a swarm of bats flew overhead, splitting our ears with their screeching as Sensei Yang’s sinister laughter echoed throughout the temple.

“Does this mean he doesn’t want to teach us Airjitzu?!” Jay wailed.

“Forget Airjitzu,” Kai retorted, “where’s the window?!”

“This way!” Cole announced, pointing to a boarded-up window at the end of the hallway.

The boys all ran up to the window, trying to force it open. But it wouldn’t budge.

“Gah, we’re caged in like animals!” Jay yelled in distress.

Sensei Yang’s sinister laughter continued to haunt the hallway, nearly making me lose my nerve.

“Let’s try the front door!” Cole suggested.

“But that's downstairs,” Kai reminded him, “and in case you haven't paid any attention, there's flying weapons trying to slice and dice us!”

Zane suddenly pointed behind Jay, shouting, “THERE’S A DUMBWAITER!”

Sure enough, set into the wall behind Jay was a large dumbwaiter, probably big enough for us all to fit into.

Jay frowned. “Hey, watch who you’re calling---” He paused, glancing behind him and seeing what Zane had pointed out. “Oh, a dumbwaiter! That can take us down!”

The five of us wasted no time in scrambling inside the dumbwaiter. We shut ourselves inside, and I breathed a sigh of relief once we were safe---for the moment, at least. It was quiet inside the small, dark space, and despite the dumbwaiter being cramped, I was reassured by being in such close proximity to the others.

Jay and Kai moved the rope upward so that the dumbwaiter moved down. They were struggling with it, since they had very little room to maneuver.

“You said there'd be enough room for all five of us in here!” Jay griped at Zane.

“MY CALCULATIONS ARE ALWAYS CORRECT!” Zane loudly reminded him. He was right: there was room for all of us in here. We were packed like sardines, but he was technically still correct.

“Ow, my ear,” Cole grumbled as Zane practically yelled right into his ear. “Aurora, turn on a light or something, would ya? I can’t see a thing.”

I huffed, lifting a hand and summoning a bright orb of yellow light in my palm. “You could at least say ‘please…’”

As soon as my light glowed inside the dumbwaiter, the ghost of Sensei Yang appeared out of nowhere.

“ _As iron sharpens iron…_ ”

Before I knew it, the dumbwaiter had arrived on the ground floor at an inhuman speed, and the boys and I were scrambling out of the confined space, screaming our heads off. As we sprinted for our lives, the floating swords from before found us again, chasing us down the hallway. We rounded a corner just in time, avoiding the swords as they crashed into the wall.

Yang’s spooky voice echoed around us as his ghost followed us. “ _As iron sharpens iron, sensei sharpens student!_ ”

The front door appeared at last. Knowing that it was probably locked, I ran to the front of the group. “Watch out!” I cried, right before summoning my elemental light again. Right as we arrived at the doors, I blasted them wide open, not so much as slowing down.

That’s how I ended up falling into thin air.

I shrieked as I discovered, too late, that there was no solid ground waiting for us outside the haunted temple. Instead, a giant, endless, glowing green abyss stretched as far as the eye could see. The hill and the night sky were gone, and nothing but this spooky void remained.

The boys had all followed me outside, and hadn’t slowed down, either, so they fell. I frantically reached upward, latching onto Jay’s foot. He latched onto Kai, who grabbed Zane, and Zane grabbed Cole as the earth ninja just barely saved us all from falling by grabbing onto a doorknob. The five of us were all screaming in terror again, and I held Jay’s leg in a death grip, nearly climbing up onto him. It was the only thing saving me from falling into the glowing green abyss below us.

“What is it?!” Jay yelled as the five of us dangled. “What’s down there?! Oh, wait, don’t tell me! I don’t wanna know!”

“WE APPEAR TO BE TRAPPED WITHIN SOME KIND OF INTERDIMENSIONAL ETHEREAL REALM!” Zane loudly informed us.

“Oh, I told you NOT to tell me, Zane!” Jay scolded. “Knowing that just makes things worse!”

He moved around a lot in his utter panic, and I tightened my grip on his legs. “ _Jay_!” I admonished, my voice coming out in a squeak. “Stop wiggling around or I’m gonna _fall_!”

With a careful, great effort, Cole was able to make it back into the temple. He pulled Zane inside, and the two of them proceeded to tug the rest of us inside. I was beyond relieved when my feet touched solid ground again, and I tried to calm my racing heart.

_This place is total madness!_ If I wasn’t so determined to save Lloyd, I’d say this whole thing was totally not worth it.

After confirming that everyone was alright, the five of us ventured back into the haunted temple, having nowhere else to go. Even though the fact that we were stuck here really concerned me, I had no plans of leaving until I properly learned Airjitzu. So, attempting to steel my nerves, I followed the boys down the hallway we’d walked through when we’d first entered, trying to retrace our steps and figure out what we could possibly do next.

That was when I heard it.

“ _Aurora?_ ”

I gasped, halting in the middle of the hallway and whirling around at the sound of a voice I knew all too well. “Lloyd?”

“ _Aurora!_ ”

There it was again! That was definitely Lloyd’s voice. There was no mistaking it! It seemed to be coming from a side hallway, one that I hadn’t noticed before. Its doors were wide open now, and I could hear Lloyd’s voice faintly calling my name from within.

“ _Aurora!_ ”

“Aurora?” That was Kai, having noticed that I’d stopped following them down the hall. He and the others were already at the other end, but had stopped upon realizing that I was frozen in the middle of the hallway. “What’s wrong?”

I met Kai’s concerned gaze, grinning. “It’s Lloyd!” I informed him, pointing down the side hallway. “Don’t you hear his voice?”

The boys all frowned, seemingly trying to listen for Lloyd’s voice. It didn’t look like any of them had heard it. Meanwhile, I could still hear him clearly.

“ _Aurora!_ ”

“There!” I exclaimed as his voice called me again. “Did you hear that?”

Cole shook his head. “We don’t hear anything, sis.”

“MY AUDIO RECEPTORS DETECT NOTHING BUT OUR OWN VOICES!” Zane reported, making all the boys cringe at the ear-splitting volume of his voice.

I frowned. That didn’t make any sense. I could very, very clearly hear Lloyd calling for me. Why couldn’t they hear it? I wasn’t just hearing things, was I?

“ _Aurora!_ ”

“He’s calling for me,” I told the boys, facing the side hallway and growing very anxious all of a sudden. This certainly didn’t sound fake. It sounded like Lloyd was here---and in real trouble.

“ _Help me!_ ”

That was the last straw.

“He needs my help!” I exclaimed, hesitating no longer as I raced through the hallway’s open doors.

The others all let out cries of protest, racing forward to stop me. But I didn’t listen to them, nor did I stop, running into the side hallway where Lloyd’s voice was coming from. His plea for help became the only thing my mind could focus on. I didn’t think, I just acted.

I failed to notice the hallway’s doors shutting and locking behind me, separating me from my brothers, who had been too late to stop me.

Sprinting down the hallway and scrambling around every turn, I followed the sound of Lloyd’s voice. This time, I wouldn’t fail. This time, I’d save him.

“ _Aurora!_ ”

“Lloyd?” I shouted a reply as I ran. “Where are you?” I looked everywhere, in every direction, trying to find any sign of him.

It wasn’t long before I rounded one last corner, spotting an open doorway at the very end of the hall. I heard Lloyd’s voice one more time, and it echoed from within the dark room awaiting me.

“ _Aurora!_ ”

I wasted no time sprinting right into the room, ready for action as I charged through the doorway. Inside the dimly lit room was a small library. Bookshelves chock-full of books lined every wall, and a few dim candles were burning on a small table in the room’s center.

And there was absolutely nobody there.

“Huh?” I muttered, completely confused. I was _so_ sure that I had heard Lloyd calling me from this room. His voice had been so clear. “L-Lloyd?”

That was when the doors slammed shut behind me. I whirled around to face them, just in time to hear the loud _click_ of the locks.

“No no no!” I exclaimed, rushing back over to the doors. I pulled and turned the doorknobs with all my might, but the doors wouldn’t budge. I was trapped in here.

_The voice wasn’t real_ , I abruptly realized. _It was the haunted temple messing with me. Lloyd was never actually here._

Growing very, very agitated with myself, I sighed. “Congratulations, Aurora,” I softly grumbled, stomping over to the candlelit table in the center of the library. “You’re an idiot.” I was so desperate to save Lloyd that I’d fallen for the ruse all too easily. If I’d actually stopped to think for a moment, I may have realized that it was the ghost of Sensei Yang playing a trick on me.

Too late now.

I eyed the doors, an idea coming to mind. _Well, I could always blast the doors open…_ Summoning my elemental light, the warm yellow glow emerging brightly in the near-darkness, I prepared to do just that.

Before I could, a sinister laugh echoed throughout the room.

I immediately recognized the creepy, chilling laughter. My light vanished as fear overtook me, and a shiver ran down my spine. I’d know that laughter anywhere. It was the laughter that had haunted my nightmares.

_Morro!_

Slowly turning around, I froze as I witnessed the sight of Morro emerging from a dark corner of the library, like something straight out of a horror movie. His mask was off, exposing his--Lloyd’s--face, and his eerie green glow surrounded him, terrifying me even more.

“Morro?!” I exclaimed, attempting to conceal my fear as I spoke and trying to bring back my confident facade. “How did you get here?! How in the world did you know where to find us?!”

Morro only responded with another bout of chilling laughter, slowly approaching me, wearing a sinister smirk. I found it a little strange that he didn’t say anything---he usually wouldn't shut up.

“S-Stay back!” I demanded, trying (and failing) to sound threatening.

Morro didn’t listen, still walking towards me. I moved around the small table, trying to keep it between me and him.

“I’m warning you!” I shouted, summoning my light in my hands again. “Stay away from me!”

I was _not_ afraid. I _wasn’t_.

Morro laughed again, still approaching me. I then decided that threatening him was useless, and shot a beam of light directly at his chest. He easily dodged it, still laughing as he did. It was almost as if he was mocking me. Desperately, I tried to hit him again and again, shooting multiple blasts of light at him. He maneuvered around each and every one of them, and no matter how hard I tried to hit him, I was completely unsuccessful.

_Why can’t I hit him?!_ I thought, beginning to panic. _I-I can’t stop him!_ I wasn’t sure if it was my growing terror throwing my aim off, of if Morro was just that good. Probably both.

“I’m not afraid of you!” I yelled at him, still attempting to appear brave and confident despite my failed attacks. “You hear me, Morro? I’m not afraid of you!”

I was _not_ afraid of him. Nope. No way. I couldn’t be afraid of him. It was stupid to be afraid of someone like him.

If Morro believed me, he didn’t seem to care. He kept approaching me, and I knew that I wouldn’t be able to avoid him forever. I had to get out of here. I could definitely take him, I just...wanted to regroup with the others. Yeah, that was it. I definitely wasn’t running scared or anything.

I made my move, darting away from him and sprinting for the closed doors. Just as I prepared to blast them open, Morro came out of nowhere, emerging from the shadows to block my way.

_What?!_

I was so startled that, in my efforts to halt myself, I ended up tripping and falling down. I grunted from the impact, looking up only to find Morro towering over me. I actually yelped, scrambling away from him at an almost inhuman speed. Somehow, I was able to get back on my feet, and I backed away from Morro as he slowly closed in on me.

“Stay back!” I demanded again.

Morro didn’t listen, continuing to approach me. He was still laughing---but it had since grown in intensity, so now it was more of a mad cackle. I couldn’t help but remember the nightmare I’d had of him, and how that same laughter had echoed throughout my head, even after waking up.

“Y-You don’t scare me!” My voice cracked as I spoke, so it didn’t sound very convincing.

I didn’t realize that he was backing me into a corner until my back hit the edge of a bookshelf. I gasped involuntarily, my breath growing quicker as I saw that there was nowhere left to go. Morro kept walking towards me, and I urged myself to think, to come up with something, _anything_ that could get me out of this horrible mess.

Morro’s laughter echoed throughout the room, and I scrunched my eyes shut, turning away from Morro and trying to block everything out. I wished for Morro to vanish, for the boys to find me, for me to wake up, for _something_ to happen that would save me from this.

“I’m not afraid,” I mumbled---now trying to convince myself more than Morro. The loud laughter drowned out my quiet voice. “I’m not afraid… I’m not afraid… I’m _not_ afraid…!”

Nobody was coming to save me. It wasn’t a nightmare this time. It was really happening. I was all alone. It was all up to me.

So...what was I going to do about it?

“I… I…” I trailed off, slowly opening my eyes. That was when I realized something important:

I already knew the truth. I’d already admitted to it. So... _why_ was I lying to myself?

“Okay.” My voice started out quiet, but eventually grew louder. “Okay!” I sighed, sounding almost defeated as I admitted the one thing that I did _not_ want to admit in that moment. “I… I _am_ afraid.” 

Slowly, my frightened expression morphed into one of acceptance, of realization. A confident expression.

“But you know what?” I asked, turning back around to face Morro. “That doesn’t matter.”

Morro’s laughter died down. He was practically right in front of me now, and would probably attack at any moment. But I kept speaking anyway.

“I may be afraid---afraid of losing Lloyd,” it took me a moment to admit the next part, “afraid of _you_ . But that doesn’t mean I can’t fight back.” Slowly, I found the courage to step forward, my voice unwavering in its confidence as I spoke. “That doesn’t mean I won’t give everything I have to save Lloyd and to stop you. I know for a fact that Lloyd is fighting as hard as he can, and so until we reunite, I’m gonna do the same! I will do whatever it takes to rescue him---and guess what? I’m _not_ going to let my fear stop me _any longer_!”

For the first time since this whole fiasco started, I felt completely, one-hundred percent, genuinely self-assured. And you could definitely hear it in my voice.

I stepped right up to Morro, standing tall and unafraid as I stared him down. “I’m _done_ moping around,” I stated. “It’s time for me to be me again. To be a leader for my team. To be the Yellow Ninja.” I grinned. “So you’d better watch out, Morro. Because ninja. Never. Quit!”

Without another word, I summoned my elemental light and struck Morro with everything I had.

He vanished into thin air.

I paused, looking around the room as my light faded. “Huh?” I muttered, completely confused again. Morro was...never actually here?

_It was an illusion, just like Lloyd’s voice_. It was then that it dawned on me. _Of course! I get it now! This whole time, Sensei Yang was making me face my fear._ As iron sharpens iron, sensei sharpens student. Now I knew what he meant by that. Despite the absolutely terrifying experience, I strangely found myself very, very grateful for it.

A smile grew on my lips, and I exhaled deeply. For the first time in a while, I felt...at peace. “Thank you,” I whispered into the empty air.

_The boys_ , I suddenly remembered. _I have to find them!_

Still wearing my smile, I tugged the mask of my gi over my head and sprinted from the library---barely noticing that the doors had long since opened for me.

Swiftly like the ninja I was, I scurried back the way I came, making my way back to the main hallway where I’d been separated from the boys. I didn’t expect to find them still there, of course---and I didn’t. But at least I had a sense of where they had gone. I ran down hallway after hallway, passing the study from before (was that water on the floor?) and scurrying up to the second floor.

It wasn’t long before I heard faint voices, accompanied by a rhythmic patter of footsteps. One voice sounded like it was counting out loud. _Cole?_ I sprinted around one last corner, spotting a ladder...right before running smack-dab into Kai.

“Ow!”

“Agh!” I stumbled a few steps back, rubbing my head where it had collided with Kai’s. “That smarts…”

“Aurora!” Kai exclaimed at the sight of me.

“You’re alright!” Jay cried out, clearly relieved.

I pulled my mask back off, grinning at him. “Of course I’m alright!” I assured him. I then took note of the rope that was tied to each of the boys’ waists, raising a curious eyebrow. “Uh...why are you all tied together?”

“No time for that,” Cole urged. “We have to catch Morro!”

“He went up to the attic,” Kai announced, pointing at the nearby ladder.

Jay let out a nervous whimper. “Attics. Definitely near the top of the list of things I’m afraid of.”

I stepped up, shooting him an encouraging grin. “Then what are we waiting for?” I immediately began climbing up the ladder toward the spooky attic. “Let’s go get ‘im, guys! We've got this!”

The boys all exchanged a bewildered look at my suddenly enthusiastic behavior before following me.

When I climbed up into the small, shadowy attic, I summoned a small orb of light to brighten up the room. Turning, I offered Kai a hand as he reached the top of the ladder. I led my brothers into the depths of the room, lighting the way as we approached the dark figure of Morro in an equally dark corner of the room. This time, I felt no fear at the sight of him.

“He’s just standing there,” Jay whispered, sounding uncertain. “What do we do?”

I immediately supplied an answer. “We face him.”

“Great. Uh…” Kai nudged Jay forward. “You go face him, Jay.”

Jay spluttered. “ _You_ face him!”

“We’ll _all_ face him,” Cole stated.

I smiled. It looked like I wasn’t the only one who had faced their fear tonight.

The five of us approached Morro slowly. I reached out a hand, and just as I was about to touch him, he vanished into thin air, just as he had before.

The boys all shrieked, jumping back. I remained where I was, humming knowingly. _Another illusion_ , I realized. _I thought so._

In place of the illusion of Morro appeared an actual ghost, one that had appeared earlier in the dumbwaiter. The ghost of Sensei Yang. Since I wasn’t freaked out at the sight of him this time, I got a better look at him. His face was old and wrinkled, and he had a long, dark-haired beard. The boys came back up to stand behind me as Sensei Yang began to speak.

“ _As iron sharpens iron, sensei sharpens student_ ,” he recited, in a far less spooky voice this time. “ _You have passed the test._ ”

“Huh?” Kai said.

A hopeful smile formed on my lips. “Then...you’ll teach us how to do Airjitzu?”

Sensei Yang pulled a scroll out of nowhere. It looked exactly like the other Scroll of Airjitzu. “ _Only those who see things through will reap the benefit of the reward._ ”

He held out the scroll, and before I could walk up and take it, Cole beat me to it. A wave of reassurance washed over me. At last, we could all learn Airjitzu and catch up to Morro. After everything we’d been through in the past few days, it was nice to finally be able to take solace in something.

_Hang on, Lloyd. We’re coming to save you._

All of a sudden, Jay gasped. “That's not the only thing we see through! Why is it I can see through my _hand_?!”

I glanced back at him, and sure enough, Jay’s entire arm was slowly becoming see-through. The ticking of a nearby clock suddenly grew very, very loud, and Sensei Yang started to glow, letting out a sinister cackle as the clock began to chime.

“ _Now you will join my students!_ ”

Several other ghosts appeared and rose up behind him. Each of them wore masks, and were restrained by shackles. Even with the masks obscuring most of their faces from view, I could see the misery and hopelessness reflected in their eyes. It was a horrifying sight.

I gulped again. “Oh no…”

“He’s not just their mentor,” Cole stated, “he’s their captor!”

“ _The new dawn's upon us_ ,” Sensei Yang announced, floating high above our heads. “ _Get out of here before the clock's last chime---if you can!_ ”

We definitely needed no further encouragement.

“Let’s get the heck out of here!” I shouted, whirling around and leading the others down the ladder. 

The boys all screamed, the rope that tied them together causing them to trip over themselves. They fell more than climbed down the ladder, landing in a heap on the floor.

“WHY DID WE TIE OURSELVES TOGETHER?!” Zane bellowed.

I moved to help them. “Let me get you out!”

“There’s no time!” Cole protested. “We just have to move!”

The boys all quickly scrambled to their feet. Kai was at the front of the line, and so I grabbed his hand so I couldn’t be separated from them again. Having no time to lose, we made for the entrance as fast as our legs could carry us. Since the boys were tied together, they had to coordinate their footsteps. Cole was doing a good job of keeping them in rhythm:

“One, two, three. One, two, three. One, two, three. One, two, three. One, two, three…”

As the light of dawn streamed through the boarded windows, a loud ding reverberated throughout the temple as a new hour was struck. It was a loud reminder that, if we didn’t hurry, we’d be turned into ghosts.

“The door!” I shouted, spotting the double front doors as we scurried down the stairs. “Hurry, guys!”

Just in case the doors were locked, I summoned my elemental light, blasting them open like I did before and praying that there was no interdimensional realm on the other side this time. Thankfully, there wasn't, and I was met with the welcome sight of the overgrown temple courtyard. Using my firm grip on Kai’s hand, I leapt through the doorway, yanking the boys outside with me.

We didn’t stop until we were down the steps and there was soft grass beneath our feet. When I stopped running, I let go of Kai’s hand and looked down at my own hands, letting out a loud sigh of relief when I saw that they were still solid.

“Oh thank goodness…” I exclaimed, trying to catch my breath.

“My hand,” Kai said, clearly as relieved as I was. “I can see my hand! We made it!”

Jay gasped, and I looked over to see him holding the empty end of the rope---the spot where Cole was supposed to be. In our rush to escape, none of us had noticed him fall behind. “But where’s Cole?!”

“Don’t worry! I got the scroll!”

At first, I was relieved at the sound of Cole’s voice. But when I turned to look at him, my heart dropped at what I saw. I shared a collective gasp with the others. _Oh no. Oh no no no no no…_

Cole frowned as he approached us, unaware of why we were so upset all of a sudden. “Why are you all looking at me like that?”

Shocked tears sprung to my eyes, completely unbidden. “I… I’m so sorry, Cole...”

“Y-You didn’t make it out in time,” Jay told him, gently.

“Yeah, Cole, you’re a…” Kai couldn’t get the word out. “A…”

That was when Cole finally looked down at himself. His expression went from confusion to shock to defeat as he took in his see-through hands and the faint green glow that surrounded him. He let out a shaky, shocked gasp. “I’m a... _ghost_?” He visibly deflated, overwhelmed by the realization that he hadn’t made it out in time.

As Sensei Yang’s evil laughter echoed from inside the temple, Cole fell to his knees. I rushed forward to comfort him, trying to hold my tears back and stay strong for his sake. The others all slowly surrounded Cole with me. When I realized that I couldn’t touch him, couldn’t hug him anymore, I almost let my tears fall free. But I knew I had to stay strong in his moment of utter despair.

And so I remained by his side, offering words of comfort and being there for him, just as he had always been there for me.


End file.
